Shadows of the Past
by bluewolf963
Summary: Sequel to Warriors of the Leaf. With Orochimaru and Akatsuki gone, the shinobi world is in a time of stability, however old grudges between villages remain. A former enemy leaves behind one last surprise. Can Naruto and Sasuke handle this new threat?
1. Tournament

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, Nagato would be busy giving Naruto a run for his money in the manga right now_

_A/N: Here is it, the first chapter of my sequel to Warriors of the Leaf. If you haven't read it, some things may not make sense right away._

**Chapter 1: Tournament**

"I wonder, which will work better? My original, or your copy?" asked Naruto.

The young blond stood in a ruined Amegakure no Sato, looking on at the person responsible for its destruction, Uchiha Madara.

"You may have my eyes, but you have no knowledge of how to use them," replied Madara. The Uchiha elder was staring down the blond before him, with a gaze full of hatred and spite.

Naruto focused his new tool at his opponent, and took note of the strings of chakra connecting him to the eight bijuu under his control. The young blond focused on those strings, attempting to disrupt them. This prompted a reaction from the Uchiha elder. Madara took note of what Naruto was attempting to accomplish.

"It must take a lot to control eight bijuu at the same time. You may not show it, but the strain placed on your body has been adding up throughout this fight. These eyes allow me to see it, to control it. You should know more than anyone that what these eyes can see, these eyes can control. No matter what tricks you use, there is no hiding that which bounds you to the bijuu. Naruto poured all of his focus and chakra into his eyes, even adding the chakra of the kyuubi. Madara attempted to do the same, trying his best to overcome the added strain put in place by Naruto.

"A willing bijuu can supply more chakra than one being controlled," spoke a voice from the direction of Naruto. Madara noticed an ethereal form gathering behind Naruto, in the form of Kyubi in her human state.

"_Impossible..."_ thought Madara, as he felt his control slipping.

"It's over," spoke Kyubi.

The chakra strings between Madara and the bijuu snapped, forcing Madara to scream out in pain.

"Finish him off now, while he's vulnerable!!" shouted Kyubi.

"Fuuton: Rasenshuriken! _(Wind Release: Spiraling Throwing Star)_" shouted Naruto, as he threw the spinning mass of chakra in the direction of Uchiha Madara. The Uchiha elder screamed out as loud as he ever had as his body was torn apart by what appeared to be an infinite amount of chakra blades. Madara's bloodied body fell to the ground upon the dissipation of the chakra form.

"_Impressive... it seems as though I underestimated this child. I'll allow him this victory for the moment. It seems that jutsu was meant to disrupt my control over chakra. I was able to teleport enough of my body in time to avoid that, but I'll act out the part of the wounded animal for now. I'll escape as soon as I have the chance. Uzumaki Naruto, I will challenge you again. I won't lose a second time," _thought Madara, as the other shinobi he was fighting convened on his location.

True to his promise, Madara escaped while being escorted by Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto to visit the grave of his otouto, Uchiha Izuna.

"For my clan, for my brother, I give it all for them," read the words inside the back cover of the journal of Uchiha Izuna, left in the hands of Naruto and Sasuke.

"_I wonder what conclusion those two will draw from his journal? I'm sure they know I could have faked it. I suppose I'll know soon enough. I am, after all, the one capable of being both a member of the distant past and the distant future," _thought Madara, as he dashed through a wooded area.

Sasuke and Naruto were slightly discouraged at losing Madara while he was in their charge. Even if his escape was inevitable, with no one being able to stop it, it still bothered the two shinobi. Rather than dwelling on it, the two opted to hold a friendly spar, on the premise of having too much time left in the day to simply go home.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)_" shouted Sasuke.

Naruto was quick to dodge the enormous fireball, and prepared a jutsu of his to counter.

"Katon: Kako no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Fire Fox Technique)_" shouted Naruto, as he breathed life into a flaming fox that rushed towards Sasuke.

"Katon: Kashu no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Fire Hand Technique)_" shouted Sasuke, as he held back the fox with a pair of flaming hands. Sasuke began concentrating fire chakra into his feet.

"Katon: Kasoku no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Fire Foot Technique)_" shouted Sasuke, as his feet lit up in flame. He did a quick flip, kicking the fox up into the air.

"I guess it's pointless to fight you with Katon no Jutsu, eh, Sasuke?" asked Naruto.

"I don't know about that. That was a cute jutsu you came up with. Inspired by anyone we know?" asked Sasuke.

"Maybe," spoke Naruto, as he pulled out the Honezanbatou _(Bone Longsword)_.

"Kenjutsu? Alright, I could go for that," spoke Sasuke, as he pulled out his katana.

The two dashed towards each other, bringing their swords to bear on one another. The two could only smile as each tried to push the other back. For several minutes, neither gave way, continuing to push. As the breeze around them changed direction, the two backed off each other, and dashed for each other once again, this time brining their weapons to each others necks, stopping just short of decapitating one another.

"Well, this is lame," spoke Sasuke.

"Yeah, not exactly the thrill I was looking for. Maybe we should use practice weapons, so we don't end up chopping each other's heads off?" asked Naruto.

"That's not a bad idea. Have any practice swords on you?" asked Sasuke, and sheathed his katana.

"On me? How about in me? Just have to pop one out..." muttered Naruto, as he concentrated chakra to both of his shoulders, until a bone popped out of his skin on each, Naruto pulled out both to reveal two bone practice swords.

"Right, the human weapon supply shop, how could I forget?" spoke Sasuke.

"You know, if I felt like it, I could probably put each weapon's shop in this village out of business," replied Naruto, as he handed one of the swords to Sasuke.

"You probably could, but then Tenten and other weapons dealers would be upset with you," spoke Sasuke.

"You have a point there. Shall we?" asked Naruto, as the two resumed their spar. The two boys came at one another again, slamming bone against bone.

"You don't have to hold back, you know. These won't break," spoke Naruto.

"How do I know you wouldn't give me a fragile one on purpose?" asked Sasuke.

"You don't, but it wouldn't be too interesting for me if I did, now, would it?" replied Naruto.

The two pulled back, and slammed their weapons into each other again with enough force to kick up the dirt beneath them.

"Now that's more like it," spoke Naruto.

The two continued their duel into the night, not even noticing the setting of the sun. Sasuke's mother had to get the two before they declared their match a draw.

A year passed by in Konohagakure no Sato. The village soon returned to normal, after the damage from Pein's invasion of Konoha was repaired. Namikaze Minato resumed his role as Hokage of Konoha. Over time, the villagers were informed of his return. While some accused Minato of abandoning the village in their time of need, many others understood why the yondaime did what he did, knowing his actions were in the best interest of the village. There was no way for him to know at the time there would be harsh consequences for the village, as a result of the village holding a jinchuuriki. Upon relinquishing the position of Hokage back to Minato, Tsunade and some other iryou-nin established a school separate from the academy for the express purpose of training iryou-nin. Tsunade dedicated the school to her otouto, Nawaki, and her lover, Dan. Those showing potential and interest in the field of iryou jutsu joined the school upon graduation from the academy.

Sasuke was admitted into ANBU. Sakura became one of the instructors at Tsunade's school, alongside Shizune. Shikamaru was promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin in strategy and planning. Choji became an instructor at the academy, in charge of taijutsu training. Ino joined Sakura in teaching and studying in Tsunade's school. Hinata continued to refine her jutsu, and was promoted to jonin alongside Neji. Her and Naruto continued to develop their relationship, going out together between missions. Shino was also promoted to jonin, and continued to work alongside Naruto and Hinata during group missions. Kiba continued training with his clan, further refining his jutsu. Lee was promoted to tokubetsu jonin in taijutsu, and joined Choji in instructing taijutsu at the academy, as well as reaching out to those who showed more potential in taijutsu as opposed to ninjutsu and genjutsu. Tenten was promoted to jonin and taught a special class at the academy on weapons use between her missions, opting to teach only part time. Neji helped Hinata in her training, allowing her to reach Jonin. The two continued to mend relations between the main and branch houses of the clan, soon removing the use of their seal, except in circumstances similar to what took place years earlier with Hiashi and Hizashi.

Abumi Zaku and Tsuchi Kin continued to refine their jutsu under direction of Haku and Zabuza. Zaku learned to develop his katon no jutsu, as well as combine most of his jutsu with his zankuha. Kin sought the assistance of Yuhi Kurenai, who took some time to instruct Kin in genjutsu between raising her son, Asuo. The remaining members of Orochimaru's Sound Five, Kimimaro, Kidomaru, and Tayuya, continued to refine their abilities. Kimimaro was accepted into ANBU. Kidomaru joined Shikamaru in working on the strategy and tactics team responsible for developing high level mission profiles. Tayuya also aided Kin in her sound based genjutsu alongside Kurenai. She also continued to develop her relationship with Shikamaru, slowly becoming more "tame."

Sasori stayed in Konoha for a month, aiding the teams searching for Madara. After those teams were disbanded, Sasori returned to Suna and took up the position of ambassador between Suna and Konoha, alongside Temari. Deidara and Kisame chose to remain in Konoha, and refined their skills. Kisame trained for several months alone with Kawazaki in kenjutsu and suiton no jutsu. Deidara continued to increase the potential of his art, looking for new ways to create destruction. He joined Root Member Sai as part of a long range tactical team for surprise assaults on enemy camps. Hidan worked with Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan in rebuilding the village of Amegakure no Sato. Hidan became one of Nagato's elite hunter-nin, using his immortality to gain an edge against all those who continued to threaten the Ame leader. Nagato continued to work behind the scenes of the village, choosing to hide behind his new Deva Path, not so much out of fear of rebellion or assassination, but more so for the sake of keeping up appearances. With his village already familiar with the Fuma Clan member leading their village, Nagato felt it best to continue to operate out of his paths. Konan continued to work alongside Nagato's Deva Path as "Angel" of Amegakure. Yahiko trained to regain the skills he had before his death before Hanzo and Danzo, aiding Nagato and Konan as necessary. He was forced to remove the piercings placed on his body while he was the Deva Path in order to avoid being confused for "Pein-sama."

During this time, the ninja world returned to the stability it had before the rise of Akatsuki and Madara's attack. The fear of war brought on by Madara's assault kept the peace between the villages, excepting some skirmishes over conflicting mission objectives. The lesser villages chose to follow suit, not wanting to provoke one of the major shinobi villages. For the time being, it would seem the peace Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko worked so hard to achieve had become a reality. Even the skirmishes that took place before were reduced in number, and rarely did they end in casualties. To this end, Nagato instructed Hidan to target only those who sought to disrupt this peace, working behind the scenes to maintain it.

"_I'm going to make this prick die a slow and painful death!"_ thought Hidan, as he was looking for someone in a wooded area. Hidan had been assigned to take out an individual who attempted to infiltrate Amegakure. The man tried placing explosives on the gate, but was caught before he could finish. The explosives were disarmed before they could be set off, and Hidan was sent to chase the man down.

"_Too bad I have to keep the bastard alive. Damn leader doesn't know how bothersome it is when I have to keep them alive for fucking 'information.' Doesn't help that I was planning to take a small vacation over the next couple of days,"_ thought Hidan, as he continued searching for the terrorist who attacked Amegakure. Hidan's outfit had changed since he was a part of Akatsuki. He now wore an outfit similar to the ANBU. He wore skin-tight, black pants with a matching shirt, along with the black shinobi sandals. Due to his style, he didn't wear armor of any kind, opting only to wear a mask bearing a demon, leading to his code name, Oni _(Demon)_. Hidan kept his scythe on his back, along with several rounds of cable kept wound in a device on his back. Hidan also had two retractable pikes on his belt. On his wrists, Hidan had a small projectile launcher that sent out an arrow tipped wire, which Hidan could retract, as an alternate method of getting the blood of his opponents. Hidan found a sign of his target, and sped off in the direction he believed his opponent to be heading.

"There you are!" shouted Hidan, as threw his scythe at the shadow of his opponent. The man quickly evaded the weapon, and responded with a jutsu.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" shouted the man, sending a large fireball towards Hidan. The hunter-nin didn't bother to evade, and ran through the mass of fire, ignoring the pain rattling his body. Hidan retracted his scythe, and brought it down on his opponent. The man he was facing pulled out a katana, and blocked the strike.

"Not bad, it's like you expected me to run through that!" shouted Hidan.

"Your style is recognizable. I've heard much of the Jashinist hunter-nin of Amegakure, the Amegakure no Oni _(Demon of Hidden Rain)._ Your weapon of choice is rather easy to pick out," replied the man, as he attempted to repel Hidan with his katana. Hidan pulled back his scythe, and attempted to hit the man again. The man was careful to make sure none of the three blades of Hidan's weapon hit him.

"Scared of what will happen if I happen to draw your blood? You're rather informed for some grunt terrorist bastard," spoke Hidan.

"Terrorist? I'm not the terrorist you're looking for. I was sent to look for him, too," replied the man.

"Bullshit!" shouted Hidan, as he pulled back his scythe, and jumped back from the man. He pointed his wrist toward his opponent, and activated his projectile launcher. The man before Hidan was surprised, but not caught off guard, as he deflected the speedy weapon away. Hidan retracted the one, and activated the other, hoping to catch the man off guard. This time, it appeared that Hidan hit his mark. Hidan retracted his weapon to find no blood on his weapon. The target he hit turned to smoke.

"Fucking bunshin! _(Clone)_" shouted Hidan. The Jashinist observed a katana going through his body.

"Will you shut it for a second, damn it! I'm not the enemy!" shouted the man, as he pulled back his katana.

"Oh, then why did you do that? You have any idea how fucking uncomfortable that is!?" shouted Hidan, as he brought his scythe to bare on his opponent once again. His opponent responded with his katana, and began knocking Hidan back. Hidan was quick to realize the one he was fighting was superior to him in speed, and began taking cuts across his body. Hidan made attempts to block the strikes of his opponents katana with his scythe, only to have his weapon cut in half when his opponents katana began to glow red. Hidan jumped back, prompting his opponent to chase him. Out of the shadows of the wooded area they were in, Hidan was able to see his opponent clearly. The man before him wore a Konoha ANBU outfit. His mask had dual spirals focusing on each of his eyes with an otherwise emotionless appearance. The man held his katana in a defensive pose.

"Do you see I'm not your opponent now?" asked the Konoha ANBU.

"Yeah, yeah. You didn't have to give me the run through earlier, prick," replied Hidan.

"I see your manners are just as pleasant as always," responded the Konoha ANBU, while placing his katana on his back.

"What's with the fruity spirals? The last little shit I saw dressed like that was an annoying pain in the ass," spoke Hidan.

"A trap of sorts. One you've already fallen into," spoke the Konoha ANBU.

Hidan pondered what the man before him was speaking of, before he found himself in a world unfamiliar to him. The ground beneath him was made of fire, save for a platform him and the Konoha ANBU were standing on.

"Genjutsu? That would make you a Uchiha, so which one?" asked Hidan.

"I am referred to as Kajo _(spiral)_," replied the Konoha ANBU.

"Kajo? As in Konoha's Kajougen? _(spiral illusion)_" asked Hidan.

Kajo nodded in response.

"That would make you... Uchiha Sasuke," spoke Hidan.

"Correct, Amegakure no Oni, or should I say, Hidan," replied Sasuke.

"Great, well, now that we know who we are, drop the fucking illusion!" shouted Hidan.

"It is necessary. You should know we don't reveal our identities to outsiders. In my world, no outsiders can eavesdrop," replied Sasuke, as he dropped his genjutsu.

"So, you're out after the prick that tried to bomb his way into Ame?" asked Hidan.

"He tried to bomb his way into Konoha and Iwa, too. Seems he got tired of dealing with the major villages, and tried to target yours," replied Sasuke.

"Yeah, yeah, so do you know where he is?" asked Hidan.

"I have an idea of where he might be headed. Seems his next target is Kusa. Seems he knows what would happen if we set foot in Kusa no Kuni. We should be able to catch him before he crosses the border, if we hurry," replied Sasuke.

"Fine, let me seal my scythe and pull out my spare," spoke Hidan, as he picked up the pieces of his scythe and placed them in a storage scroll marked 大鎌 _(oogama, scythe)_. He pulled out a second scythe out of a second storage scroll, different from the first as being marked with a 二 _(ni, two)_.

The two made their way towards the border of Kusa no Kuni. Just as Sasuke predicted, the man they were chasing was attempting to cross the border. The man found himself with a scythe blocking his path.

"Where do you think you're going, asshole!" shouted Hidan.

"Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!" shouted Sasuke, as several fireballs were sent towards the terrorist. The man quickly evaded, and threw a series of clay balls towards the two. The man concentrated his chakra, and detonated the clay, knocking back the two.

"What the Hell!? A Deidara clone!?" shouted Hidan, as he knocked away more bombs thrown in his direction.

"It would seem so," spoke Sasuke, while charging his katana with lightning chakra, quickly disabling the bombs sent at him.

"Ha! You might have blocked those, but you won't dodge the next one!" shouted the man as he focused his chakra again. The ground below Hidan and Sasuke erupted in fire as bombs set the ground exploded. Sasuke and Hidan appeared to disappear in the blast.

"_Too easy. I thought ANBU were stronger than that,"_ thought the man, as he continued for Kusa.

"Going somewhere?" asked Hidan, and he swung his scythe at the terrorist. The man was barely able to avoid being hit, only to run into Sasuke. The Uchiha swung his arm at the man's face, knocking him into the ground. Hidan activated both of his projectile launchers, piercing both of the terrorist's shoulders. The man found himself bound to the ground, with no way to move.

"It's over," spoke Sasuke.

"Ha, you think this will stop me?" asked the man, as he set off more explosives he had planted in the ground. As Hidan was knocked back by the explosions, the wires holding the terrorist down were pulled out, allowing the man a chance to run. He took no chances in being caught again, and used a doton jutsu to escape. As the man continued in his escape, he felt a horrible pain in his legs.

"_What the Hell?"_ thought the man.

Matching pains appeared in the man's arms, disrupting his ability to use his escape technique. He was forced into resurfacing. The man tried to stand up, but found it impossible. The man was horrified to see his arms and legs were bleeding profusely. Sasuke quickly found the man.

"What have you done to me!?" shouted the man.

"I haven't done anything," spoke Sasuke.

Hidan followed behind Sasuke. He was bleeding in the same places as the man before him. Hidan made another Jashin circle on the ground so the man could see what Hidan did to him.

"If you really want to know, then witness the power of Jashin-sama!" shouted Hidan, as he impaled his hand. The terrorist's hand started to bleed. The pair took note the man had the same hand mouths as Deidara.

"You should do the other hand, to make sure he can't make any more bombs," spoke Sasuke.

"No!! Don't do it!!" shouted the man. He screamed out in pain as Hidan impaled his other hand, disabling the man.

"That should do it," spoke Sasuke.

"I suppose," spoke Hidan, as he bowed his head. It sounded to Sasuke like Hidan was begging for forgiveness.

"You're real lucky my leader doesn't want you dead," spoke Hidan.

"I take it you were charged with his capture?" asked Sasuke.

"Correct," replied Hidan in an irritated tone.

"As was my mission. Since we're closest to your village, I'll follow. Your leader is likely interested in the same information as the Hokage," spoke Sasuke.

"Fine. Let's go," spoke Hidan.

Hidan opted to carry the body, and returned to Amegakure, with Sasuke following. The two arrived by the end of the day. The guards at the gate were hesitant to allow the entry of an outsider, but relented when they were told Sasuke was of Konoha. The two headed straight for Pein's tower. Hidan placed the man in a detention cell before entering Pein's office.

"Oh, Konoha no ANBU? Does your village have an interest in this man?" asked Pein's Deva Path.

"He attacked our village, as well as Iwa," replied Sasuke.

"I see. Very well. Officially, he is our prisoner, but I have no problem with sharing information. I am taking the man to the interrogation room. I will await your presence there," spoke Pein. The long haired man went back to his paperwork, while Hidan led Sasuke for the interrogation room. Pein's Human Path was with the man. He was placed in a room with low lighting. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all painted black.

"What are you doing to do to me?" asked the terrorist, while looking into the eyes of Pein.

"I am going to find out who you are, and why you attacked my village," replied Pein.

At that moment, Hidan and Sasuke entered the room.

"Ah, I see that you two are here," spoke Pein.

Hidan and Sasuke nodded. Pein returned his focus to the terrorist.

"Now, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. I'll ask a question, and you give me an answer. If you refuse, or lie, Oni will stab himself. I'm sure you are aware of the implications," spoke Pein. Hidan had already taken another blood sample of the man from his weapons, and began making a Jashin circle.

"First, your name," asked Pein.

"Hazaki Hitoshi," replied the man.

"Good, now, why did you attack my village?" asked Pein.

"I felt like it," replied Hitoshi.

Hidan impaled his shoulder.

"Could you repeat?" asked Pein.

"I couldn't get into Konoha. I thought I would have better luck entering a lesser shinobi village," replied Hitoshi.

"Better," replied Pein, "What did you intend to do upon entering my village?"

"I wanted to burn it to the ground," spoke Hitoshi.

"Why? Did someone ask you to do this?" asked Pein.

"No, I did this of my own choice. I wanted to be able to burn a hidden village to the ground," replied the man.

Hidan impaled his other shoulder.

"That didn't seem to be the truth," spoke Pein.

"I wanted to prove I was better than the one known as Deidara!!" shouted the man.

"Is this why you attacked Konoha and Iwa?" asked Sasuke.

"Yes!! I wanted to let the world know I'm not some copy! I wanted to show the world I'm the best. My bombs are better than those of everyone else! And then I was going the blast Deidara himself into Hell! There you have it! My life's plan!" shouted the man.

"So, you weren't working for anyone?" asked Pein.

"No, I hate my village. They refused to acknowledge my gifts, refusing to give me jonin rank. They said I wasn't ready for it, that I was too much of a 'loose cannon.' I showed them, now, didn't I?" replied Hitoshi.

"You proved them right. You're nothing more than a mentally unstable individual. I was under the impression that you were sent here as an assassin, but I see you are nothing more than a crazed individual who chose to waste his gifts," spoke Pein.

"And I couldn't kill the bastard?" asked Hidan.

"He's Iwa's problem, now. Hidan, 'giftwrap him,' and send him on his way," replied Pein.

Hidan smiled behind his mask.

"Konoha ANBU, please meet me in my office," spoke Pein.

Sasuke nodded, and returned to face Pein's Deva Path.

After Sasuke left, Hidan pulled out his scythe.

"What are you going to do with that?" asked Hitoshi.

"Enjoy the pleasure of the greatest pain!" shouted Hidan, as he swung the scythe at himself. Loud screaming could be heard coming from the interrogation room.

"What did you mean by 'giftwrap?'" asked Sasuke.

"If you know anything about Oni, you would understand," replied Pein.

"I see."

"Judging from your appearance, I believe you are Konoha's Kajougen, correct?"

"Correct."

"Uchiha Sasuke, it has been a while since I last had a chance to speak with a shinobi of Konoha. How has your village been over the past year?"

"We're repaired the village since your incursion. Things are back to how they were before. It would seem you've made much progress in rebuilding your village."

"I have made a lot of progress? Perhaps for that which you can see. We've rebuilt most of the village. The genin of my village have had plenty of missions in reconstructing the various buildings in my village. In terms of military strength, we are still down. Most of our jonin were wiped out in Madara's attack. It will take a while to rebuild my shinobi force."

"I believe you are set to hold the next chunin exams. That would be a prime opportunity to show off the skills of your lesser shinobi, perhaps boost your image."

"This is true. I've spent much time personally training my genin. I want to make a good showing."

"I look forward to it, as I am sure Naruto is."

"How is Naruto? I heard he's the number one candidate for next Hokage."

"That is correct. The Hokage is trying to avoid showing favoritism by focusing on his son, but there aren't too many other shinobi with the skill and will to take the position."

"Ah, good. I had hoped to one day see him as your kage. I didn't ask you here to reminisce, though."

"You have information for Konoha?"

"You said I could show our reputation through the chunin exams, right?"

"That is one way. I take it you have something else in mind."

"That's right. I wish to host a tournament, a contest for the strongest shinobi of the hidden villages, including mine. I believe, if we put up a good outing, we can boost our reputation in a more effective manner. I had planned on informing the other villages within the next couple of weeks. We're busy preparing the grounds in which the tournament will take place."

"An interesting idea. A tournament featuring jonin level shinobi would be an effective way to demonstrate the strength of your village. When is the tournament?"

"A month from now. Since you are here, I thought it best to inform your village directly."

"What are the rules for the tournament?"

"It will consist of multiple parts. The first will be a race through an underground pipe maze, riddled with traps and some of my strongest shinobi. Those who do not make it through within a set amount of time will be eliminated. The second stage will feature team battles. The final stage will be individual battles."

"Is there a prize for victory?"

"The pride of being the best in the lands... and a one on one exhibition match against me."

"Pride is one thing, but I've been wanting to take a shot at you since I heard you gave Naruto a challenge."

"Oh? Well, I suggest you do your best to win. I don't take to fighting, but such an opportunity does not come up often."

"How many are allowed to compete from each village?"

"Two three-man cells from each village. The best of the best, of course. I hope to send word to the major clients of the various countries, as well."

"Sounds like fun. I'll be sure to give word to Konoha. You'll find both me and Naruto here."

"I'm counting on it. While you look forward to a match with me, I wish to avenge my title of being undefeated against him. Not that I don't wish for one of my shinobi to win, of course."

"Time will tell. Is there anything else you wish for me to tell Konoha."

"Tell them to bring forth the best challenge they can offer."

"I can do that. Good day, Pein-san."

"Farewell, Sasuke-san."

Sasuke took off for Konoha, his mission now complete. He was hoping Hitoshi would have proven to be more of a challenge. Most of his targets have been fairly weak individuals, at least to Sasuke. Even most of the jonin-level shinobi he fought proved to be of little challenge. Naruto felt the same on his missions. Sasuke knew Naruto would be looking forward to Pein's tournament just as much as he was. Sasuke's trip to Konoha was uneventful. Upon entry to the village, Sasuke made his way for the Hokage's tower.

"Kajo, report," spoke Minato.

"The terrorist, Hazaki Hitoshi, was not affiliated with any village. He merely sought to prove himself through the destruction of a village," replied Sasuke.

"Prove himself?"

"He wished to prove to Iwa that he was stronger than Deidara."

"That's all? He attacked a hidden village over something so trivial?"

Sasuke nodded in response.

"What are his current whereabouts?" asked Minato.

"He was captured by an Ame hunter-nin. I joined their shinobi in Hitoshi's interrogation," replied Sasuke.

"I see. Anything else to report?"

"There is one other thing. The leader of Ame plans to hold a tournament for jonin level shinobi."

"A tournament, eh?"

Sasuke explained to Minato the details of the tournament he heard from Pein. Minato thought over the idea of the tournament. At the end of Sasuke's explanation, Minato had a grin on his face.

"A tournament for jonin level ninja? Sounds like an opportunity that's too hard to pass up," spoke Minato.

"Are you interested in participating?" asked Sasuke.

"Of course. I wouldn't miss out on this. And it's one month from now, eh? That should give me some time to prepare our teams."

"Have anyone in mind?"

"You and Naruto for sure. Itachi would be a good choice. I still need three more. I'll have to give this careful thought. I'll discuss this with you, Naruto, and Itachi, upon their return from their missions."

"Will I be relieved from missions until the tournament?"

"Of course. I need you to be at your best."

"Good, I'll start training now."

"Just what I want to hear. You are dismissed, Kajo."

Sasuke took his leave, and headed straight for the Uchiha compound in order to begin his training.

"Hidan, are you finished?" asked Pein's Human Path.

"I told myself I would make that prick suffer for interrupting my vacation," spoke Hidan.

"I thought your idea of a vacation _was_ killing?"

"Fuck you," replied Hidan, while giving Pein the one finger salute.

"You're the _only_ person who can get away with that, and only because of your skills," replied Pein in a tone bordering irritation.

"And I can't kill you because I can never get to your real body."

"I wonder why that is?"

"Grr... you didn't come to chide me about taking my fucking time, so what is it you want?"

"I know I told you about my tournament, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, I heard."

"Good, you get a one month vacation, but I want you to use it to train. You're going to be part of one of my teams."

"Is that so? Remind me again, what's the prize?"

"One on one with me. If memory serves, you've always wanted to 'curse' me, right? Well, here's your chance."

"That's right, I remember you saying something like that. That's why I was interested. Yeah, sure, I'll enter. Who are you going to team up with me?"

"I haven't decided yet. I'll be sure to assign to you two individuals who can work well with your style."

"Work well with me? By that, do you mean someone who uses jutsu that would be bad to use around a partner who could die?"

"No, not like that. Currently, the only one able to stitch you back together is me. It wouldn't do me good to put you with a team that would chop you into pieces. The pride of the village is on the line, after all. I want to show everyone that we have the same strength as before."

"Right, I heard. You can have your petty pride, but I'm in this to get a piece of you. Don't you forget."

"As I said before when we were Akatsuki, your reasons are your own, but when you work for me, you work for my ideals, as well, as a way of fulfilling your own. Don't forget that."

"Like I care. So, no missions for a month, right."

"Right. Get to your training. Practice your evasion skills. I can't stitch you back together in the middle of the tournament."

"Fine, later," replied Hidan, as he made his way for his personal training grounds, leaving behind a torn apart corpse that was once Hazaki Hitoshi.

"_He always leaves me with such an awful mess to clean up. He thinks I had this room painted black to induce fear. I had it painted black to make the mess less visible,"_ Pein thought to himself, as he disposed of the body. _"It's times like these I miss Zetsu."_

In his office, Deva Path Pein began writing out the letters for the other hidden villages.

"I would hate to show favoritism to Konoha by allowing them to be the first to know. It would be best if I informed the other villages, too," spoke Pein.

"Is that so? Well, giving them a little more time should make for a more interesting tournament, right?" asked Konan.

"I suppose. I'll have to give our men more time off to train, as well, though. That's really the only reason I wanted to wait for another couple of weeks."

"I see. We'll have to prepare as well. Have you finished with setting up the traps in the underground maze?"

"They're finished, for the most part. The only task left is to make entry/exit points for our ambush zones. Animal Path is working on that, along with our summons. They'll have the underground prepared well in advance of the tournament."

"Are you thinking of allowing our men to train in there?"

"I thought about it, but that would provide our teams with an unfair advantage. It would be best to keep things as even as possible. I want to show off the skills of our shinobi. What better way than to have then enter into the unknown with the rest."

"Of course. Have you given thought to our teams?"

"Hidan for sure. I'm still considering other jonin able to participate."

"I have some people in mind. I'll discuss them with you later."

"I figured you had some ideas."

"There is one thing. I heard Oto has been reorganized into a village, following Orochimaru's death at the hands of Uchiha Sasuke over a year ago. Should we ask if they are interested?"

"I've heard that rumor, too. I have considered inviting them to participate. Their new village is only a few months old. I'm sure they would be interested in making a showing, if they have the shinobi. I'll sent an invitation to them."

"So, you're set to include all the villages?"

"Correct. Konoha, Suna, Kumo, Iwa, Kiri, Kusa, Oto, and Taki. Let's see what happens," spoke Pein, as his Animal Path appeared. Animal Path summoned several birds and large insects to deliver the messages on his behalf. Within a few days, the hidden villages received their notices.

"Hmm... a message from Ame? What could they want?" thought a man working in the message center of Kumo.

"What do you have there?" asked a woman.

"A message for the Raikage, from the leader of Ame."

"I'll take it to her," replied the woman. She made her way for the Raikage's office, politely knocking before entering.

"Raikage-sama!" shouted the woman.

"What is it?" asked the Raikage.

"I have a message for you from the leader of Ame."

"Oh? Very well, I'll take a look at it. Dismissed."

"The woman placed the letter on the Raikage's desk, and walked off.

The Raikage thumbed through the letter, carefully considering the idea behind Pein's tournament.

"He is a clever one, trying to show off to everyone. This should be interesting. Kirabi has been complaining to me about a lack of things to do as of late. I'll give him something to shut his mouth," spoke the Raikage to herself.

In Iwa, the Tsuchikage also received one of Pein's letters.

"A tournament in Amegakure? That guy has brass balls to be pulling something like this in just a short amount of time since his village and high ranking ninja were supposedly wiped out. I wouldn't bother if it weren't for the fact that he invited shinobi from the other hidden villages. A chance to make a showing like this doesn't come up too often. I might just have to enter myself on behalf of the village. He didn't say anything about the village kage being unable to enter," spoke the Tsuchikage to himself. A large grin went across his face as he thought over who he would put on the teams representing Iwa.

The Mizukage opened up his letter, wondering why Ame had any interest in communication with his village.

"A tournament, eh? That sounds like fun. I can think of a few who would represent us well. His timing couldn't be better. We've done much to improve since the kekkei genkai war. We've even managed to integrate those with kekkei genkai into our main force. They'll put on quite a show. The other villages won't know what hit them," spoke the Mizukage.

"A tournament, eh?" spoke Kawazaki, as he entered the office, over hearing what the Mizukage was saying.

"You were listening in on me?"

"It's not like I was trying, or anything. Not to mention your voice does get rather loud when you're excited about something. Don't tell me you were going to leave me out of this."

"Well, you are certainly jonin rank, that much I don't doubt. I'm not sure how the presence of a bijuu will affect things, though."

"Oh, are you worried about something insignificant like that? If you're that concerned, I promise I won't use my transformation. Seriously, though, do you really think the other villages won't use their jinchuuriki? Love them or hate them, they are often the most powerful shinobi of a village."

"You're thinking about that brat from Konoha, right? Just because he beat Uchiha Madara, the entire shinobi world has been singing his praises. The one benefit is the better treatment of jinchuuriki."

"And, though you might not like to admit it, you've been far more respectful to me as a result."

"Right, well, regardless of what I think of you and your kind, you are still one of the most powerful shinobi in my village."

"Good, then we have an agreement. You'll send me to participate in the tournament."

"Looking forward to facing off against anyone in particular?"

"Fish face. I'm sure Konoha will send him. I wouldn't mind knocking him down a few pegs again. That, and I want to see if he's managed to learn anything."

"Fine, I'll send you to the tournament."

"Good. Now, who are you going to send with me?"

"You heard about the entry requirements, did you?"

"I have good ears. It's a bad habit you have to mutter every word you read. Now, who are you sending?"

"I'm not sure who else. I just read this now, you know. Probably other members of the Nananin _(Seven)_."

"Hold on, while many of them are strong, they aren't that strong. They've got a long way to go before they'll be up to par with the previous Nananin."

"Fine, who do you suggest?"

"Hey, I just heard about this just now. I'm about as sure as you are, I just know who _not_ to send."

"Fine, fine. We'll discuss this later. Now, go."

"Didn't you call me here for something? I didn't just come here on a whim, you know."

"Forget it, it's not important, now, go before I lose my temper."

"Yeah, yeah. Ja ne," spoke Kawazaki as he made his way out of the Mizukage's tower.

"_Pain in the ass. Thinks he's so high and mighty because he is a bijuu. I'll show him one of these days,"_ the Mizukage thought to himself, as he resumed his daily paperwork.

Kusa received their notice, as was quick to deliver it to their leader, Kamakusa Futoshi.

"Kamakusa-sama!" shouted a man entering Futoshi's office.

"What is it?" asked Futoshi.

"Message from Amegakure."

"Oh, Amegakure? I wonder... I'll read through it when I get a chance."

"Hai!" replied the man who delivered the messages as he left.

"_Heh, I bet they're saying they won't be able to host the chunin exams this time. As weak as they became, it wouldn't surprise me at all,"_ thought Futoshi as he opened the scroll holding the message. His expression changed from one of amusement to intrigue as he finished reading through the scroll.

"My my, how interesting. A tournament for jonin level ninja? I didn't think he would pull something like that. This Pein fellow is rather amusing. Much more so than Hanzo. I'll be more than thrilled to entertain him, and put him down a few notches when I defeat him personally. I was able to give Hanzo a run for his money before. I doubt this stand up is as strong as his reputation makes him out to be. I'll be more than happy to entertain him," spoke Futoshi, as he pondered who he was going to send to Pein's tournament.

Shibuki in Taki received his message from Pein. He opened it up cautiously, not knowing if the scroll itself was some kind of trap.

"_Well, it didn't emit any poisonous gases. I suppose I'm safe for the moment. Let's see just what kind of message Pein has sent out,"_ thought Shibuki, as he began to read through the scroll.

"_So, that's his plan. A tournament for jonin level ninja. A chance to show off before the next chunin exams. This would be a great opportunity to boost morale. A victory by one of our teams would do that, and, with any luck boost our client base. I could use this as an opportunity to see how far I've come in my skills as leader of a hidden village. I'll accept, and go myself. Now, to figure out who else to send,"_ thought Shibuki, upon finishing the message.

In the former Otogakure, Pein's message arrived to their message center. A rough, older looking man received the message.

"Hm, to Otogakure? I suppose the name of our village hasn't really been spread out too far as of yet. I suppose Leader-sama will be interested in this," muttered the man as he made his way for his leader's office.

The new village in Ta no Kuni was more of a village than the former Otogakure. Rather than being a series of bases that shifted around constantly, the new village was a formal village. The shinobi force consisted of ninja who were part of Otogakure. Without a leader, they had hired themselves out as mercenaries. When they gained a new leader, and became organized again, they began construction on a new village. Since it had only been a few months since the foundation of the new village, much of the village was still under construction. The shinobi academy of the new village, modeled after that of Kiri and Konoha, was still undergoing construction. The village was attempting to recruit enough genin to participate in the upcoming chunin exams, in order to show that they did exist as a village, and lay the foundations of their client base. After being tricked by Orochimaru, the daimyou was a little more skeptical upon being approached about the founding of a new village. Those gathered under the new banner made a point of how this village would be a true village by personally showing the daimyou around the construction site. The daimyou was impressed by how far the ninja had progressed on their own, and began funding the village about a month ago. It was then that the name of the new village was announced, Ankokugakure no Sato. _(The Village Hidden in Darkness)_ The leader's tower was under heavy guard, much like that of Amegakure. The man delivering the scroll had to undergo multiple security checks. Even the scroll itself was checked over for traps. The door to the leader's office was tightly sealed. A small hatch opened for the man to place the scroll. Upon dropping off the message, the man took his leave, glad he didn't have to go through as many security checks on the way out. The leader of the new village took a look at the message sent to him.

"_Hm, a tournament, eh? I'm surprised they knew about the village. It's obvious they don't know the name. I'll be sure to make a name for my village, though. I have a few strong shinobi I can make use of. I'll be sure to send them. I'll leave a lasting impression. It's a shame I can't go there myself. I would love to show Pein my talents. Now then, just who should I gather? They'll need the entire month, and I have the perfect training in mind,"_ thought the leader of Ankoku.

The message for Suna arrived in their message center. A woman took note of its arrival, gave it a quick inspection, and prepared to deliver it to Gaara.

"Gaara-sama," spoke the woman, as she entered Gaara's office.

"What?" asked Gaara.

"I have a message for you from Amegakure. It is addressed to you," replied the woman as she handed the scroll to Gaara.

"Very well, I shall look it over. Arigatou," replied Gaara, as the woman returned to her post in the message center. Gaara opted to look over the message immediately, hoping it would be more interesting than the rest of the paperwork he had spent the day going through.

"A tournament for jonin in Amegakure. Interesting. They are choosing to show off their strength before the chunin exams. From what I've heard, most of their jonin were wiped out a year ago when the village was attacked by Uchiha Madara. Still, if the other villages are going to participate, this would make for an ideal opportunity to show off the increased strength of our village," Gaara spoke to himself as he sent out for three of his best jonin. Within several moments, the jonin he sent for arrived.

"Temari, Kankuro, Sasori. I just received some interesting information from Amegakure," spoke Gaara.

"What kind of information?" asked Temari.

Gaara explained the tournament to the three before him. The group appeared interested in participating.

"Pein has always had interesting ways of accomplishing his goals. A tournament to show the progress of his village? I wouldn't mind participating. It would give me a way to demonstrate my art," replied Sasori.

"Something tells me your interested in fighting someone at the tournament, Sasori-sama," spoke Kankuro. Since the time Sasori returned to the village, Kankuro asked Sasori to help improve his skills in Kugutsu no Jutsu, remembering how Sasori was able to best him so easily. Sasori, intrigued by Kankuro's attempt to defeat him following the capture of Gaara, opted to devote some of his spare time in training Kankuro. Though Kankuro's skills were still no where near that of Sasori's, he had become much more formidable after studying under the Kugutsu no Jutsu master.

"Perhaps," replied Sasori.

"You wouldn't mind telling me who? Interested in winning so you can fight that Pein guy?" asked Kankuro.

"No, I'm not interested in that. I'm more interested in seeing if Konoha will send Deidara," replied Sasori.

"Your former partner? He would make for a nice challenge. I wouldn't mind getting a shot at him," replied Kankuro.

"I wouldn't mind challenging him, either," spoke Gaara.

"He did defeat you. I didn't think you were the type to really care about things such as rematches," spoke Sasori.

"I don't make them a priority; however, it is a chance for me to get away from all this paperwork. I find it most irritating," replied Gaara.

"The things they don't tell you about the job until you take it, right?" spoke Temari.

"Indeed. We will participate. All of you are in. Temari, Kankuro, you will be with me. Sasori, I leave it to you to find strong individuals who will compliment your abilities," spoke Gaara.

"I can do that. There are some promising shinobi in this village, though, to be honest, I would much rather work alone," replied Sasori.

"I understand, but we must do this in teams," spoke Gaara.

"What do you mean by that, Gaara?" asked Kankuro.

"I understand what it's like to want to fight alone, though, sometimes, it is better to work in teams, something I've come to appreciate since I first met Uzumaki," replied Gaara.

"Oh, that's what you meant," spoke Kankuro.

"You shouldn't read too deeply into what he says. You should know that much by now," spoke Temari.

"Yeah, I know," spoke Kankuro.

"I leave you to train. I need to finish this nonsense before me, so I may prepare myself for the tournament. Dismissed," spoke Gaara.

The three before Gaara nodded, and headed off to make their preparations for the tournament.

In the following few days, Naruto and Itachi returned from their missions, and were informed of the tournament from Minato.

"A tournament for jonin? Interesting," spoke Naruto.

"I take it you want us to participate?" asked Itachi.

"I would. I already have in mind who to send, all except for one space," replied Minato.

"Who did you plan on sending, tou-san?" asked Naruto.

"Both of you, Kisame, Deidara, and Sasuke," replied Minato.

"Good choices. They'll all do well in the tournament," spoke Itachi.

"Itachi, I planned on teaming you with Kisame and Deidara. I believe your abilities would compliment each other well. Naruto, I know you and Sasuke work well with one another. I'll leave it to the two of you to decide who will join you in the tournament. For the time being, you two are relieved from missions. Take this time to train. Remember, the pride of the village is on the line," replied Minato.

"I won't disappoint you. I'll show you I'm ready to become Hokage!" shouted Naruto.

"That's the spirit I expected to see from you, Naruto," replied Minato.

"This does sound like fun. Not to mention it'll give me another chance to put him and Sasuke in their place. I can't turn down a chance like this," spoke Itachi.

"Oh, interested in fighting us, eh? I'll keep that in mind, should we run into each other in the maze, or end up fighting in the team battles," replied Naruto.

"Good, I expect a good challenge from you," spoke Itachi.

"Do try to remember that, while you may end up having to fight against each other, you are representing the village. Don't devote too much time and effort into trying to knock each other off," replied Minato.

"Don't worry, we'll make the village proud," spoke Naruto.

"Off you go then. Let me know who you choose to bring with you," replied Minato, as he resumed his paperwork. Naruto and Itachi made their way for the Uchiha compound. Naruto searched the training area to find Sasuke. Sure enough, the young Uchiha was there, fighting a kage bunshin _(shadow clone)_.

"Hey, Sasuke!" shouted Naruto.

"Oh, Naruto. I take it you heard about the tournament?" asked Sasuke.

"Of course. Did tou-san tell you who he selected to go?"

"He said both of us and Itachi when I asked him."

"He's also selected Deidara and Kisame. He's teaming them up with Itachi."

"Is he? That means we'll get a chance to face off with him. This tournament is getting better by the minute."

"I know. He told me we need to select a third member for our team."

"Did he? Hm... who to choose. I don't suppose you have anyone in mind."

"I did, actually."

"Oh?"

Naruto took Sasuke to meet the person he thought of joining their team. Sasuke had a good idea of who Naruto had in mind as the pair made their way to the Hyuga compound.

"_Yeah, Neji would be a good choice. He's been a jonin longer than both of us, and even though he is a branch house member, he's still one of the strongest of the clan,"_ thought Sasuke.

"Hiashi-sama!" shouted Naruto.

"Oh, Naruto, how are you?" asked Hiashi.

"Busy as usual, do you know where Hinata is?" asked Naruto.

"She's in the training area. She just got back from her mission a couple days ago. The Hokage supposedly had a mission coming up for her, so I don't think she'll be around for too long. If you want to spend time with her, I would do so now," replied Hiashi.

"Oh, don't worry, I have a mission from tou-san for the both of us," spoke Naruto.

"_Hinata!? Is he letting his emotions decide things for him,"_ thought Sasuke.

"I see. Very well, I wish you luck," replied Hiashi.

"Hai, arigatou, Hiashi-sama," spoke Naruto.

The pair entered the training ground to find Hinata near a fountain, working on her suiton no jutsu.

"Hey, Hinata-chan!" shouted Naruto.

"Oh, Naruto-kun!" shouted Hinata, as she dropped her training to embrace Naruto. The two shared a quick kiss. Naruto proceeded to explain to Hinata about the tournament, and about his decision to include her in his team.

"You want me to join you, Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata.

"Of course. I know we work well together, and you didn't become jonin on a whim. You earned it all the way," replied Naruto.

"Uh, Naruto, are you sure? I mean, no offense to you, Hinata, but there are more experienced jonin, such as Kakashi-sensei, available," spoke Sasuke.

"Oh? Hey, Hinata, remember that jutsu you were working on before we went on our last missions?" asked Naruto.

"Hai," replied Hinata.

"I think Sasuke should see it," spoke Naruto, while winking at Hinata. Hinata immediately knew what Naruto intended, and headed over to the fountain. The Hyuga heiress began making a series of hand seals.

"Suiton: Juuatsu Taihou no Jutsu! _(Water Release: Pressure Cannon Technique)_" shouted Hinata. A powerful column of water headed in the direction of Sasuke.

"Shit! Katon: Kakai no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Fire Armor Technique)_" shouted Sasuke.

Flames started to emerge around Sasuke as the water made contact with his body. A plume of steam erupted from Sasuke as he was sent into a wall.

"So, Sasuke, should we recruit Neji?" asked Naruto.

"No, Hinata is more than powerful enough," replied Sasuke.

"Thought that might change your mind," spoke Naruto, while making a large grin.

"I hope that didn't hurt, Sasuke-san!" shouted Hinata.

"No, not at all. That wall was made out of marshmallows, why would it hurt!?" shouted Sasuke.

"Hey, she didn't put the wall there. The jutsu just got your clothes wet, thanks to that jutsu of yours," replied Naruto.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going to get you for that later, Naruto, all the same," replied Sasuke, with an evil grin on his face.

"_Thank goodness he didn't date Sakura or another iryou-nin like Tsunade. If he invited someone like that along and I doubted his choice, I wouldn't be complaining about hitting a wall... I would be dead,"_ thought Sasuke.

The shinobi of the various villages selected to enter the tournament spent the next month training hard in preparation for the challenge ahead. No one wanted to lose. With many wishing to see certain people at the tournament, everyone did their best to prepare. At the end of the month, Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, Itachi, Deidara, and Kisame assembled at the main gate. Minato was there the send them off.

"Well guys, I wish I could join you on this outing, but there is much to do here to prepare for the chunin exams in a few weeks. Do the village proud, alright?" spoke Minato.

"Will do, tou-san!" shouted Naruto.

"We'll show them what we can do," spoke Sasuke.

"I'll do the village, and my clan, proud," spoke Hinata.

"Like I said, I have to knock these guys down a few pegs, I'll make it a good showing all the same," spoke Itachi.

"I'm out to show Kiri why they should have accepted my ways," spoke Kisame.

"I hope to get a chance to show Sasori no danna who the best artist truly is, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Good. Best of luck to you all," replied Minato.

"Hai!" shouted the elite shinobi of Konoha, as they made their way for Ame. The groups from the other villages were also en route, anxiously awaiting the challenges that lie ahead.

_A/N: I'm going to try and include translations for most of the Japanese I throw in, hopefully making the fight scenes a little easier to follow. On that note, I introduced Sarutobi Asuo, the son of Kurenai and Asuma. Asuo can be spelled as __明日男__, where __明 __means bright, __日 __means day, and __男 __means male. I was trying to go for name that went with the "Will of Fire," while sounding kind of close to Asuma's name. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review._


	2. Ankokugakure

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; if I did, Danzo would never become Hokage_

_A/N: Sorry for the delay; I've been without the Internet for the past week, so it's been a little difficult getting anything done. Enjoy the chapter._

**Chapter 2: Ankokugakure**

"You called us, Leader-sama?" asked one of six shinobi. All had hitai-ate featuring two small stars on ether side of a circle above a horizontal line.

"I did. Have you heard of the tournament issued by Nagato of Amegakure no Sato?" asked the man addressed as leader.

"Hai, leader-sama," replied all six shinobi.

"Good. Then you should know why you are hear," replied the leader.

"We are honored you have chosen us to represent Ankokugakure in this tournament, leader-sama," replied another one of the shinobi.

"You are six of the best shinobi here. You, who led the bands of the former Oto-nin, are the strongest of these lands, and the most ideal candidates for representing our village to the rest of the shinobi world," spoke Ankoku's leader.

"Arigatou, Leader-sama," replied the six shinobi.

"I expect to hear of your victory. And, if possible, defeat Nagato," spoke the Ankoku leader.

"Do you wish for us to kill him?" asked a kunoichi of the group.

"No, that would not be advised. Such a move could cause problems for our village. I have my own grudges against Nagato, but they will be dealt with in due time. For now, aim for victory," spoke the leader of Ankoku.

"Hai, leader-sama!" shouted the shinobi.

"Come, I have informed the village of your selection, and wish to formally introduce you to the village," spoke Ankoku's leader.

The six shinobi nodded, and followed their leader to the balcony outside of his office. The leader was the first to appear on the balcony. He wore a suit of black armor, and had long black hair. The man's eyes were black with a solid red iris and pupil. The people of the village cheered loudly upon seeing their leader appear before them.

"Everyone, as I am sure you are already aware, Nagato of Amegakure no Sato is holding a tournament for all the high level shinobi of the lands. The best of all the villages will be there, including the strongest of the Five Great Nations. I have chosen six of the greatest shinobi these lands have produced to meet the challenges that lie ahead in this tournament. I have only known them for a few months, but I'm sure most of you have been well acquainted with them for years. I present to you, the Sentaku Roku _(Chosen Six)_!" shouted the leader of Ankoku.

"Come out! Koukei Akari!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A kunoichi with tanned skin came out. Here outfit consisted of a tight top with a loose hanging skirt over tight pants. The outfit was black with yellow shoulders and stripes at the side going down the skirt. Her eyes were black with a yellow iris.

"Shirazaki Tsuki!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A kunoichi in a loose fitting gray outfit appeared, with black bicycle shorts underneath. On her back was a black crescent moon. She had a bone white sword hanging at her side, hidden in an ivory sheath. Her hair was dark, her skin pale, and her eyes were white with a solid black iris and pupil.

"Kurohama Kukai!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A man in an outfit of black armor over a dark gray shirt and pants emerged. His eyes were black with a solid white iris and pupil, black hair, and pale skin.

"These three make up our first team to enter the tournament!" shouted the leader of Ankoku. The crowd below erupted into cheers at the appearance of the three shinobi. All three were leaders of different groups following the collapse of Otogakure. As a team, they were thought to be nearly invincible by the villagers.

"And now, to introduce our second team, come out, Tazaki Fue!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A kunoichi with dark red hair appeared. She had white eyes with a steal gray iris and pale skin. She wore a white kimono with a styled 田 _(ta, rice fields)_ in black. She had a small case hanging on her left, and a sheathed katana hanging on her right.

"Tazaki Ikuo!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A man with black hair appeared. He had white eyes and a solid black iris and pupil, with pale skin. This man wore black kimono with a styled 田 in white. He also had a small case on his left and a sheathed katana hanging from his right.

"Tazaki Hayashi!" shouted the Ankoku leader.

A man with blond hair appeared. He had white eyes and a bright blue iris, with tanned skin. This man had a black kimono with a styled 田 in white. His katana hung on the left, while a small case was on his right.

"I present your second team, the leaders of the Tazaki Ichizoku! _(Tazaki Clan)_" shouted the Ankoku leader.

"We shall represent Ankoku with the conviction bestowed upon us by our leader, Sen Honou-sama!" shouted all members of the Sentaku Roku.

The crowd cheered with a deafening roar. The villagers had a fire within them they were never allowed to let ablaze under Orochimaru's regime. For the first time, the people of the shinobi village of Ta no Kuni could feel pride in something.

"We will take victory in this tournament, and show the world that our village is stronger than any of the other villages! Even the shinobi of the Great Five nations won't stand a chance against us!" shouted Kukai.

"As I would expect of my shinobi," spoke Honou, "Now, go and make a name for our village!"

"Hai, leader-sama!" shouted the six shinobi before Honou. They stood atop the balcony, listening to one last cheer from the villagers below, then took off for Amegakure at their best speed.

"Let us have one more cheer for the Sentaku Roku of Ankoku!" shouted Honou, causing the crowd to erupt in cheers once again. Honou took a bow before returning to his office chamber. He sat down, and took a sip of tea, thinking on the current events.

"_So, Nagato, you wish to show that your village has recovered, eh? We'll see just what it is you can do. This village I've established... it will allow me the chance to build my strength, right before we crush the other nations... and you're at the top of the list, Nagato!" _thought Honou, as he continued to sip at his tea, and file through some documents laid out on his desk.

"What do you guys think of this tournament?" asked Kukai.

"What do you mean?" asked Fue.

"Why did you guys decide to participate?" asked Kukai.

"For the chance to show the strength of the Tazaki Ichizoku. The famous clans of the other lands... the Hyuga, Yotsuki, even the extinct Kaguya have distinguished themselves more than our clan. I wish to change that. That's why I'm here," replied Fue.

"That's our Fue for you. We made her our leader because of her fighting spirit. She always knows the right path to take in life," spoke Hayashi.

"Kiss ass," spoke Ikuo.

"Stuck up," replied Hayashi.

"I should call you that. You're the one who's always 'stuck up' Fue's ass," spoke Ikuo.

"I can't help but admire her," replied Hayashi.

"I'll bet..." muttered Ikuo.

"Will you two give it a rest," spoke Fue, "So, why are you guys doing this?"

"For me, it's to make a name for myself. I don't really care about the village, or its people, even thought they seem to adore me," spoke Akari.

"For me, it's to honor the man who bestowed this upon me," spoke Tsuki, while holding her sword. It's a precious keepsake, and a powerful weapon... it's all I have left to remember him by. I want to prove myself worthy of his respect."

"As for me, I hope to repay a couple of grudges, namely against the shinobi of Konoha. I hope to find the man who left me with this 'keepsake,'" replied Kukai, as he pulled down part of his undershirt to show the start of a scar.

"This mark goes all across my body. I almost died that day, if it weren't for the fact the man who did this was in such a hurry, I probably would have," spoke Kukai.

"Took part in that invasion, did you? That snake bastard did a lot of things without consideration for his people. That's why I kept our clan away from him. I should thank the one that killed him," spoke Fue.

"We all were thankful to see him go, for the most part. Only a few of us had any kind of respect for him," replied Kukai.

"I guess I'm the only one in the group to show any kind of respect for him," spoke Tsuki.

"Really? What for?" asked Akari.

"Because of _him_ and his respect for Orochimaru-sama. I know I'm in the minority, though. I know not to press the point with the others about the glory of Orochimaru-sama. I hold my respect for him to myself, as do the few others who respected him," spoke Tsuki.

"I never really picked you for a snake lover," spoke Kukai.

"There are a few of us. I'm sure you know how the worst of us have tried to assassinate Honou-sama," replied Tsuki.

"I've killed those would be assassins on several occasions," spoke Ikuo, "If it weren't for the fact that Honou-sama wills you to participate in this tournament, I would kill you where you stand," spoke Ikuo.

"Gee... what a pleasant thought..." muttered Tsuki.

"Have any of you been to Amegakure before?" asked Fue, "none of us have been out of Ta no Kuni."

"I haven't," spoke Tsuki.

"I've never really had reason to go there," replied Akari.

"I've been on a couple of spy missions for Orochimaru in the past," spoke Kukai, "He suspected it was where the leader of Akatsuki was hiding. I was never able to confirm it myself, though Orochimaru's former partner, Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin of Konoha, was able to find the man. I heard he was nearly killed in battle against the man, if memory serves."

"I thought he was dead," spoke Fue.

"I heard rumors that he survived, but I've never seen proof that he lived, Fue-san," spoke Hayashi.

"Is that so? I didn't know you kept an ear open for information," spoke Ikuo.

"I may appear to be 'easy going and detached with reality,' as you often say, but I pay attention to what takes place in the world," replied Hayashi.

"He's actually better at getting information than you are. Amazing, isn't it?" asked Fue.

"Perhaps, but he was never able to confirm it. Rumors such as that are just glorified gossip. A genin could pick up on such nonsense," replied Ikuo.

"Then why didn't you?" spoke Hayashi, with a big grin on his face.

"Fuck you!!" shouted Ikuo.

"Again..." muttered Fue.

"Well, we know for sure the leader of Akatsuki was able to defeat Jiraiya. This man is currently the leader of Amegakure no Sato," spoke Kukai.

"I heard about that. We get to face him in a one on one match if we win the tournament. Beating him would prove the supremacy of our clan for sure," replied Fue.

"It would do a lot for the pride of any individual, but I doubt any of us stand a chance against him," spoke Kukai.

"You saying something like that? That's amazing," spoke Tsuki.

"He has the Rinnegan, the legendary eyes once possessed by the Rikudou Sennin. I wouldn't expect to beat this man. He is said to be undefeated. I merely wish to fight as hard as I can against him," replied Kukai.

"Hmm, I heard he was defeated at one point in time," spoke Hayashi.

"Another rumor of yours?" asked Kukai, sounding slightly irritated.

"Not quite a fact, but not quite a rumor, either. I know nothing of the individual who did it, but there are plenty who claim someone was able to defeat him at one point in time, enough to confirm that much as true," spoke Hayashi.

"Is that so? And what have you heard of the one who beat him?" asked Kukai, sounding a little more interested.

"A lot of different things. Some say it was the Rikudou Sennin himself, brought back from the dead. Others say it was a great beast that did it. Others still claim it was a man with enough chakra to take on a bijuu single handedly," replied Hayashi.

"Isn't there a rumor that the man was a legendary creature told about only in children's stories?" asked Ikuo.

"Yeah, some of those, too," replied Hayashi.

"I was being sarcastic..." muttered Ikuo.

"Well, whoever was able to do this, I would like to face this one in battle, too," spoke Kukai.

"Well, if he exists, and is a member of one of the shinobi villages, the person will more than likely be in the tournament, right?" asked Hayashi.

"True. No village would hide a 'weapon' like that for an event of this caliber," spoke Kukai.

At that moment, an explosion rocked the canyon the group from Ankoku was traveling through. Each had a nervous twitch, as they felt the presence of a being with a large amount of chakra.

"What the Hell was that!?" shouted Kukai.

"It looks like it came from over there in that mountain!" shouted Fue.

"Did you guys feel that chakra just now?" asked Hayashi.

"I thought I felt something, but it seems to have gone away. Must have been something exploding. I don't sense anything now," spoke Ikuo.

"I'll take a look at it," spoke Akari.

"If that is your desire. We'll wait here for a few minutes. Don't be long," spoke Kukai.

Akari nodded, and dashed off towards the site of the explosion. She saw what appeared to be the remains of a cave at the point the explosion occurred. It appeared as though it had been blown open. Akari took a look around the point of the explosion. She noticed there was nothing out of the ordinary. She pulled out a kunai, and entered slowly, looking out for anything that could pose a threat. She checked the walls of the cave to make sure they were stable, and continued into the cave. As she continued, she took note of the start of man made features.

"_Was this some kind of facility? It is well known that Orochimaru had bases throughout all of Ta no Kuni. We've yet to find them all. Perhaps that explosion was a result of some failed experiment? A long term one at that," _thought Akari.

The kunoichi continued to look around the facility. She saw several emptied vats. Some of them appeared to be cracked open, and covered in blood. It was obvious Orochimaru used the facility for experimenting on humans. The thought sent chills down Akari's spine. She found one chamber that appeared to be active.

"_What is this?"_ thought Akari as she read the screen that was connected to the chamber.

"Experiment successful. Subject ready for field testing. Door is open," read the panel.

"_Did whatever was in here cause that explosion? And where is it if it did?"_ thought Akari, as she continued to look around the base. She found a room full of dissection tools, many covered in blood. Next to it was a room full of corpses. Akari stifled a scream, being careful not to give into her emotions, and end up doing something that could give her presence away. She found some documents about what was taking place in there.

"Ultimate Body Project," read the header of the research documents.

"_I should bring this back with me. Honou-sama might be interested in this,"_ thought Akari. She decided she had seen all she needed to see. It was apparent to her that the lab had been abandoned. The explosion was likely caused by a piece of malfunctioning equipment, though she couldn't find an explanation for the source of chakra.

"It was probably just a reaction to that explosion..." muttered Akari to herself, as she made her way for the exit.

"What was a reaction to that explosion?" came a voice from behind Akari. The kunoichi acted on instinct and prepared one of her strong jutsu.

"Hikari Kantsuu Kousen no Jutsu! _(Light Piercing Ray Technique)_" shouted Akari. The light entering the cave twisted and lifted off of the ground, directing it's way towards the voice. The light burst into several branches, rushing past Akari, and diving straight at the source of the voice.

"Serves you right," spoke Akari.

"Ow, that almost hurt," came the voice.

"Die!!" shouted Akari.

"What is taking Akari so long?" asked Kukai.

"Dunno. Think we should check up on her?" asked Tsuki.

"There's no need," spoke Akari.

"About time. What was up there?" asked Fue.

"Some lab of Orochimaru's. One of his pets tried to attack, but I got the best of... it," replied Akari.

"Is that so? Anything of note in there?" asked Kukai.

"No, the lab was destroyed between that explosion and our fight. All the documents pertaining to what took place in the lab appeared to have been destroyed, too," replied Akari.

"That's a damn shame. Some of the things the snake left behind proved to be of some use to us," spoke Kukai.

"Goes to show just how great Orochimaru-sama was," spoke Tsuki.

"There she goes again," spoke Akari.

"While I would like to see how much further you three take your bickering, there is a tournament for us to attend," spoke Fue.

"I was about to say the same. Don't lump me in with those two. We might be on a team together, but we prefer to work alone. Especially me," replied Kukai.

"Whatever, let's go," spoke Fue.

The group out of Ankoku continued on their way towards Amegakure, pausing to sleep and eat, as well as continue their arguments, much as the other shinobi heading towards Amegakure.

"Just about half a day left, and we'll be there," spoke Sasuke.

"I wonder how long we'll have to wait for the start of the tournament?" asked Naruto.

"I would think he would start it as soon as we were all there. He might wait for a few more clients, or something, but he should know just how precious time is to a shinobi," spoke Itachi.

"I suppose," replied Sasuke.

"I can't wait, I've been waiting for a chance to fight a real battle again. I haven't had any fun in a fight since my last duel with Kawazaki," spoke Kisame.

"What about all those spars you had with that Zabuza guy, hm?" asked Deidara.

"Oh, he does put up a good fight, but we're at roughly the same level. Kawazaki-san on the other hand... now there's a challenge!" shouted Kisame.

"You know, I just realized something, hm," spoke Deidara.

"What would that be?" asked Kisame.

"Well, Nagato was the leader of Akatsuki, right?" asked Deidara.

"So what about it?" asked Kisame.

"Well, wouldn't that mean he knows all of our strengths and weaknesses, and trained his shinobi to deal with them, hm?" asked Deidara.

"He does know something of how I fight, too, now that you mention it," spoke Naruto.

"See? His shinobi will be the most difficult to deal with!" shouted Deidara.

"Why would they? I've spent a year working on new strategies and styles. I won't use anything they know, if it seems they know me far too well," replied Naruto, "What have you been doing for the past year? Slacking off?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, for real, it's not an issue as long as you keep evolving your fighting style. Information becomes obsolete rather quickly in the shinobi world," spoke Itachi.

"Grr... I know that, but... my art is perfect, hm!" shouted Deidara.

"I kicked your ass, remember?" asked Naruto.

"You caught me off guard," replied Deidara.

"You should have kept in mind that there would be others coming after you," spoke Naruto.

"Shut up!!" shouted Deidara.

"You haven't tried on working on any close range styles, have you?" asked Sasuke.

"Not really..." muttered Deidara.

"Your going to have problems with the first part of the tournament," spoke Kisame.

"Yeah, it's kind of hard to avoid close range battles underground," spoke Naruto.

"Silence!!" shouted Deidara.

"Actually, we do have the best advantage for the maze, since we've seen how the network works. I'm sure this maze he has set up won't be too much different," spoke Itachi.

"That's true, but Sasori was with us, too. I'm sure Suna would send him. He could inform the group with him on how the tunnels work, not to mention the Ame jonin will know," spoke Sasuke.

"I've considered that. The Ame jonin will likely be relatively weak. They'll try to avoid combat in the maze, and use their knowledge to escape. Sasori can tell his team about it, but they still haven't been there before, so we'll still have the advantage," replied Itachi.

"Good to know. The maze doesn't interest me that much, to tell you the truth. I'm looking forward to the individual battles. I can really cut loose when I don't have to look out for a team," spoke Kisame.

"Indeed, the maze doesn't interest me too much, either. The fights interested me the best," spoke Itachi.

"If I have to fight any of you, I'll be sure to show you just how grand my art is, hm," spoke Deidara.

"I suppose, though, I would think they would avoid setting up pairings that would prevent anyone from fighting someone from their own village," spoke Sasuke.

"We'll know soon enough," spoke Naruto.

Everyone in the group nodded in agreement.

"Let's get to sleep. I want to get moving again," spoke Kisame.

"Right, I'll keep the first watch," spoke Itachi.

The group from Konoha finished setting up their camp, and rested for the night, taking turns keeping lookout for anyone interested in picking a fight with Konoha shinobi. The night passed without incident, and the group continued on to their destination.

"Oi, you see them over their?" asked Kukai.

"Yeah, looks like six people heading for Ame... they're Konoha shinobi," spoke Ikuo.

"Konoha, eh? I wouldn't mind fighting them now," spoke Kukai.

"Easy does it, we can wait for the tournament. It would be best to avoid starting unnecessary fights," spoke Fue.

"Fine," replied Kukai.

"There's a group of six shinobi up ahead, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Which village?" asked Itachi.

"Unknown. I've never seen a hitai-ate like that before. It has two stars on either side of a circle above a horizontal line," replied Deidara.

"That must be the new village in Ta no Kuni," spoke Sasuke.

"I heard about that, but never heard of what the name of the village was," spoke Naruto.

"We don't know the name of the village, either. I'm sure they'll be more than happy to enlighten us," spoke Itachi.

The two groups decided to approach one another. When the groups met each other, each shinobi looked at each of the members of the opposing group in detail.

"_Hmm... blond hair hanging down with a ponytail on top... and those hands... so, Deidara of Iwa is with Konoha? And that's Hoshigaki Kisame of Kiri. Don't know much about the others... hmm... a Hyuga? Interesting," _thought Fue.

Kukai seemed to have his gaze fixed on Itachi. His face turned from a relaxed one to one of anger.

"You!! I'll kill you!!" shouted Kukai, as he charged towards Itachi. A spike emerged from the end of the armor on his right arm. Itachi drew his katana, and deflected Kukai's thrusts.

"Enough!" shouted Fue, as she appeared before Kukai with her katana at his throat.

"He was the one that did this!!" shouted Kukai.

"What are you talking about?" asked Itachi.

"During Orochimaru's invasion of Konoha four years ago, I tried to stop you as you approached the village!" shouted Kukai.

"The invasion..." muttered Itachi.

"_I have to get there as fast as possible. If my information is correct, Orochimaru is planning to assassinate the Sandaime. I can't allow him to kill the old man!" shouted Itachi, as he raced towards Konoha at his best speed. As the village came into view, he could see smoke rising out of the village._

"_Damn it! Am I too late!? It looks like it's already started!" shouted Itachi._

"_Stop where you stand!!" shouted a man wearing black armor. He had on a cow patterned scarf and was wearing an Oto hitai-ate._

"_I don't have time to play with you!" shouted Itachi, as he drew his katana._

"_I am not to allow anyone to pass. Orochimaru wouldn't want someone to backup Konoha in their fight, after all. Even if it's just one person," spoke the man, as he emerged from the shadows. The man before Itachi was Kukai. Spikes emerged from the tips of his armor on his arms and knees, while blades appeared at the tips of his feet. Itachi charged straight at the man. Kukai blocked Itachi's strikes with the spikes on his arms, while attempting to impale Itachi with the spikes on his knees. Itachi backed off, avoiding a kick what would have removed his head._

"I don't have time for this,"_ thought Itachi, as he activated his Sharingan._

"_Sharingan!? Who the Hell are you!?" shouted Kukai._

"_That's none of your concern," shouted Itachi, as he charged at Kukai at his best speed. Kukai was unable to defend in time as Itachi slashed him down. His scarf, as well as the top of his armor on his chest was cut through. Blood spattered out of the wound as Kukai was knocked into the ground from the force of the hit. Itachi didn't check to see if the man was dead or alive, he merely continued on his way into Konoha._

"That's right, you were the one with the armor that tried to stop me. I see you dropped the scarf, and switched over the the new village. I'm sorry about what happened, but I had to protect the Hokage. Orochimaru nearly killed him," spoke Itachi.

"Don't think I won't try to get my revenge on you during this tournament, Uchiha," spoke Kukai.

"Uchiha Itachi."

"Uchiha _Itachi_!?" shouted Kukai, "The one Orochimaru tried to possess!? I see, so that's why I couldn't defeat you. I've improved much since then. Keep this in mind, Kurohama Kukai will avenge himself upon you in this tournament!"

"Very well, Kukai-san. I look forward to the challenge," replied Itachi.

Kukai grunted as he retracted the spike into his armor.

"_It's not him I'm worried about. That kunoichi... I could barely track her speed, even with my Sharingan,"_ thought Itachi.

"So that's the one, eh, Kukai?" asked Hayashi, "He's a tough one. You might have trouble with him."

"Shut it, blondie!!" shouted Kukai.

"Geez, I was just playing," replied Hayashi, "anyways, we know Itachi, here, and these two, Kisame and Deidara are rather famous, but what of the rest of you?"

"Uzumaki Naruto."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hyuga Hinata."

"I see. You two are of doujutsu clans. I don't know anything of your lineage, though," spoke Hayashi.

"I'm the son of Namikaze Minato, Yondaime Hokage," replied Naruto.

"He had a son? I see... aren't you a jinchuuriki? I've heard some rumors about you," spoke Hayashi.

"I am, I am the kyuubi no jinchuuriki," replied Naruto.

"The kyuubi no youko? Interesting," spoke Hayashi.

"I don't suppose we could ask of your names?" asked Hinata.

"Oh, right. Tazaki Hayashi."

"Tazaki Ikuo."

"Tazaki Fue."

"Koukei Akari."

"Shirazaki Tsuki."

"The Tazaki Ichizoku of Ta no Kuni? I think I've heard of you before, though, I don't know much outside of you being one of the stronger clans of Ta no Kuni," spoke Itachi.

"You have heard of us, have you? Interesting. There will be many who know of us by the end of this tournament. I won't lose to anyone," spoke Fue.

"I look forward to fighting you," spoke Itachi, which seemed to anger Kukai, though he opted not to say anything in response.

"Let's finish our journey, I want to get to the fighting," spoke Kisame.

"Anxious?" asked Hayashi.

"Just feel like kicking some ass," replied Kisame, while giving a shark-like grin. Hayashi seemed to be a little bothered by his grin, and took a couple steps away from him. As the group continued on, Tsuki took note of the handle on Naruto's zanbatou.

"Hey, Naruto, right? Where did you get the sword from?" asked Tsuki.

"This? I made it myself," replied Naruto.

"It looks like a weapon of a shikotsumyaku. _(Dead Bone Pulse)_" spoke Tsuki.

"It is. How do you know about that? Did you know Kaguya Kimimaro?" asked Naruto.

"I did. He gave me this weapon... I heard he had died in battle. I carry this to remember him by," replied Tsuki.

"Dead? He's alive and well. He's a jonin of Konoha," replied Naruto.

"What!? Are you serious!? I thought he succumbed to his disease!?" shouted Tsuki.

"No, Tsunade-sama was able to cure him of his disease," replied Naruto.

"I don't believe it... all this time, I thought he was dead," spoke Tsuki.

"A few members of the Oto squad sent after me are alive and are a part of Konoha," spoke Sasuke.

"They are? Which ones?" asked Tsuki.

"Tayuya and Kidomaru. The others were killed in battle," replied Sasuke.

"I see... I never liked the other two... the fat one was always complaining, and Sakon and Ukon were just... creepy..." muttered Tsuki.

"Hey, were you and Kimimaro lovers? You seem to know a lot about him, and you blush when you talk about your weapon," asked Naruto.

"Um... uh..." muttered Tsuki.

"She's been like that ever since she had a chance encounter with the Kaguya while working on a mission for Orochimaru. Apparently she must have left some kind of impression on him, since he gave her that weapon," spoke Kukai.

"Oh?" replied Naruto.

"_That's sort of how things were between Naruto and me before I finally opened up to him,"_ thought Hinata.

"I'll tell you what, after this tournament is over, you can come to Konoha and see him. It shouldn't be a problem, and it would be a good way to promote relations between our two villages," spoke Naruto.

"I wouldn't mind, if it's okay with you, Kukai-san," spoke Tsuki.

"I could care less, really," replied Kukai.

"Okay then. Now I have even more reason to do well in this tournament!" shouted Tsuki.

"You're such a fan girl," spoke Akari.

"Shut up! I'm not some lousy fan girl!! I can take care of things on my own just fine... it doesn't hurt to have an interest in someone, though. Maybe you should find a guy to be interested in, eh? You don't want to die an old maid, do you?" asked Tsuki.

"Gah, I could have anyone I wanted. Watch. Hey, you, blondie, wanna go on a date with me after the tournament," asked Akari.

"I think not," spoke Hinata, while getting close to Naruto.

"I already have a girlfriend, thank you," replied Naruto.

"How about you?" asked Akari of Sasuke.

"My girlfriend would kill both of us," replied Sasuke.

"What about you, blondie number two?" asked Akari.

"Hmm... you're not really my type, hm," replied Deidara.

"How about you?" asked Akari, while looking at Itachi.

"Not interested," replied Itachi, while thinking of several kunoichi he was going to ask out later.

"I'm interested!" shouted Kisame.

"No!!" shouted Akari.

"I win!" shouted Tsuki.

"Shove it!!" shouted Akari, "At least you understand. We don't need guys, right?"

"Uh... no, I suppose," spoke Fue, while thinking of asking out Itachi if he proved to be a strong enough opponent."

"What about..."

"No Hayashi!" shouted Akari.

The group continued on into Amegakure. They were the first group to arrive in the village. As per usual with Amegakure, security was tight. Even though the village and country were relatively stable, Nagato preferred not to take too many risks. The group was escorted to Nagato's tower, and taken to his office. There, a man with a long, orange hair in a top ponytail and multiple piercings greeted the group.

"Hey, look, it's your twin," spoke Kisame.

"Kind of..." muttered Deidara.

"Hey, Pein-san, it's been a while, eh?" asked Naruto.

"A little while. I was hoping your Hokage was going to send you here. Hmm... I've never seen a hitai-ate like that before. I take it you are from the new village in Ta no Kuni?" asked Pein.

"Correct, we are shinobi of Ankokugakure no Sato," replied Fue.

"Interesting name. I'm curious to see how your group will fare in battle. Tell me, are either of you the village leader?" asked Pein.

"No, Honou-sama need to keep his presence in the village," spoke Kukai.

"I see. I didn't expect to see the village leaders here, of course. You are the first group to arrive. Some of the clients have already come. I have arranged quarters for everyone near the arena where the tournament will be held. There are three rooms per village. You may divide yourselves up as you wish amongst them. Simply tell the person at the hotel who are you, and you will be given you room keys. Also, I should tell you that you will be under constant watch while you're here. My ANBU will monitor you closely, merely as a precaution, of course. I would advise you not to do anything foolish while you are here," explained Pein.

"Understood, Pein-sama," spoke Fue.

"Maybe after the tournament, we can meet up somewhere and talk about our lives over the past year," spoke Naruto.

"I look forward to it. I'm sure Konan and Yahiko would be more than glad to see you again," spoke Pein.

"Hai!" shouted Naruto.

"I wish all of you the best of luck in the tournament," spoke Pein.

"Arigatou, Pein-sama," spoke the shinobi in the room.

"I'll send a messenger to give you the details on the time frame of the tournament as the other participants arrive. The tournament will begin in five days at the latest, otherwise, it will begin after the arrival of the other shinobi," explained Pein.

Everyone nodded in response, and made their way for the hotel. The Ankoku group split into two groups, boys and girls, opting to use their third room for storage. For the Konoha group, Hinata and Naruto shared one room, Sasuke and Itachi shared the second room, and Kisame and Deidara took the third room.

Over the next few days, participants from the other villages arrived. The hotel became filled with the shinobi of the lands as everyone arrived. All the shinobi met with Pein. Some showed some interest in fighting the man. The teams of Ame quietly observed the shinobi arriving in their village. Hidan was more than happy to see members from his former organization there, as did another member of his team, though both were interested for different reasons.

"Hey, Seigai, still want to pummel everyone for capturing you before?" asked Hidan.

"Years of loyal service just to have Pein kill me first? I want to win this tournament for the sake of burying him alive!! Hell, should be doing it to you, after all, you were part of Akatsuki, too," spoke Seigai, a man wearing a blue kimono. He had dark hair, a green container held in his pants, mostly hidden by his kimono, along with a small pipe.

"It's not like I was the one who did you in," spoke Hidan.

"You were there, you helped," replied Seigai.

"Ungrateful mother fucker... we could have left you dead, you know?" replied Hidan.

"I suppose I should be thankful for that... but still, I don't appreciate being used as I was. I'll have my revenge by the end of this tournament," spoke Seigai.

"You mean we'll have our revenge, right?" asked a kunoichi in a purple kimono, matching that of Seigai's.

"Of course, Amika-chan," replied Seigai.

"Tell me, Hidan, why did you decide to ask us to join your team? You had some nerve to ask me after what you did to my husband," spoke Amika.

"I needed two strong shinobi to fight with me. Sad to say, you two were the only ones interested. The other bastards I asked were too worried about me 'cursing them,' or something," replied Hidan.

"Whatever," spoke Seigai.

"You two fight well together, too. As long as you don't cut me up in battle, we'll be fine," spoke Hidan.

"I suppose, but after the team part is over, all bets are off," spoke Amika.

"Feh, like I care. I need a team to get through the first part of the tournament. What happens to you after that isn't of my concern," replied Hidan.

"Likewise," replied Seigai.

"Any of the participants catch your eye?" asked Amika.

"The other former members of Akatsuki, of course. I didn't think the Kazekage would come. I wouldn't mind challenging him. The leader of Kusa doesn't interest me so much. That Kawazaki guy from Kiri has a good reputation. Who really caught my eye was that blond out of Konoha," replied Seigai.

"Oh?" asked Amika.

"Uzumaki Naruto? He's the kyuubi no jinchuuriki. He's also the only person to have ever defeated Pein," replied Hidan, waiting to see if he would get the reaction he was hoping for.

"What!?" shouted Amika and Seigai.

"You mean to tell me that brat defeated Pein!?" shouted Seigai.

"And before you two could get the chance. Didn't you know? Not that he really told anyone. I just know as a matter of circumstance," replied Hidan.

"You're lying. No one has ever defeated him! No one can before we do!" shouted Amika.

"Ask him if you want. You'll be in for a surprise," spoke Hidan.

The two disappeared quickly, leaving Hidan to laugh to himself, knowing he was able to get under the skin of his "teammates."

"Hey Pein!!" shouted Seigai, as he and Amika stormed into his office.

"What do you want, Seigai-san?" asked Pein.

"Did that blond brat from Konoha beat you in battle?" asked Seigai.

"Hidan shooting off his mouth again? Or are you two paying too much attention to the rumors flying around?" asked Pein.

"Fuck those damn rumors! I want to know the truth!" shouted Seigai.

"As do I, now tell us!" shouted Amika.

"You shouldn't listen to rumors, or anything Hidan says in jest," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Amika.

"However, he is right in this case. I would rather you not tell anyone, but I won't lie about the issue if it's brought up," replied Pein.

Amika and Seigai went silent. They bowed to Pein before leaving their leader alone to think.

"_Seems they have a new rival. If it gives them drive to do well, then so be it. They are representing our village, after all,"_ thought Pein.

All of the shinobi prepared themselves for the arrival of tournament. They knew the day was soon to arrive, with all the shinobi in the hotel. The next morning, a messenger arrived to give the time frame on the tournament details.

"So, it begins tomorrow. I look forward to it," spoke Gaara, as he faced his siblings.

"Aren't you worried about being a bigger target than the others? You are a kage after all. I'm sure that'll get the attention of many of the competitors," spoke Temari.

"I'm not the only village leader here. The leaders of Kusa and Taki are here, as well as the Tsuchikage," replied Gaara.

"That's true, but still, I'm sure a lot out there know you are a jinchuuriki, and may have reason to hold a grudge against you for that," spoke Temari.

"If that's the case, then I'll defeat them. If that's how they want it, that's how it'll go," replied Gaara.

"You shouldn't baby him so much, you know. It's not like _that_ could happen again," spoke Kankuro.

"And I won't allow myself to be captured so easily. Not to mention I don't have to worry about protecting the village if something were to happen. You shouldn't worry too much," spoke Gaara.

"Alright then, if you say so," spoke Temari.

"You'll be watching my back; I have nothing to worry about," spoke Gaara.

"That's true. We won't let anything happen to you," spoke Kankuro.

"Alright. Maybe I am just worrying a lot about nothing," spoke Temari.

"Roshi! Takeru!" shouted the Tsuchikage.

"Hai, Gantarou-sama?" asked the two men before the kage of Iwa.

"You remember why I asked you to join me in this tournament, correct," asked Gantarou.

"Hai!" replied both men.

"You wish to challenge Nagato, and attempt to kill him for his actions while at the head of Akatsuki," spoke Roshi.

"Correct. You two also wish to avenge yourselves upon the leader of Ame, correct?" asked Gantarou.

"Hai," replied both men.

"I put on a show at the kage meeting a year ago. With everyone else willing to pardon this man, I couldn't oppose them. If it weren't for Suzume-san's words, Nagato would be in a prison right now, where he belongs," spoke Gantarou.

"It was best for you not to oppose the raikage. Our alliance with them is critical to our survival, should a fourth shinobi war break out," spoke Takeru.

"Correct, but, if I happen to kill him during our exhibition match, it will be looked at as an accident. After all, such things are known to happen during tournaments such as these," replied Gantarou.

"This is where we'll have our chance," spoke Roshi.

"I can't forgive him and his men for overwhelming me as they did. With all the deaths they've had in the organization, I may not be able to find those who fought me, but I can take it out on the one who held their command," spoke Takeru.

"Good. Then we have an agreement. I will win this tournament. You two will wipe out the competition, allowing this to be possible. You two are jinchuuriki; it should be no effort to take care of this.

"I believe the other jinchuuriki are here, too," spoke Roshi.

"Are you sure?" asked Gantarou.

"I have sensed it as well. We know the Kazekage himself is a jinchuuriki. There are two here from Kumo. Uzumaki of Konoha is here, as well was Kame Kawazaki of Kiri. I wouldn't be surprised if the others are here," spoke Takeru.

"We'll deal with them as we need to. For the time being, we must keep our eyes on our goal. By the end of this tournament, I'll have the leader of this village in a body bag," spoke Gantarou.

"Hai, Gantarou-sama," replied both men.

Many of the shinobi spent the day before the start of the tournament resting, avoiding doing anything that could keep them from being at their best for the start of the battles the next day. The village was full of spectators from all over the lands. The merchants of Ame had more business than they had ever had. They had more business than they did when Ame hosted the Chunin Selection Exams. Pein stood out by his window, looking down upon the village below, allowing Nagato to see how prosperous his village was, due to his tournament. Nagato smiled to himself. He kept himself in a secret chamber in his tower. It was only accessible to him, the Pein Rikudou, Konan, and Yahiko. At that moment, Konan entered the room.

"Nagato, are you watching the village?" asked Konan.

"I am. A year ago, I wouldn't have thought I would be able to see something like this. This village has come a long way in such a short amount of time," replied Nagato.

"I am also surprised as the level of activity in this village. It would seem public events featuring battles between shinobi have wide spanning popularity," spoke Konan.

"It's because the shinobi arts are constantly evolving, never remaining the same from year to year. Such a thing would be necessary to allow ninja to carry out their duties, to maintain a level of unpredictability. That's what draws people to these matches," explained Nagato.

"Of course. Are you ready for tomorrow?" asked Konan.

"I am. I'll be sure to put on a good show. I hope you've set things up on your end," replied Nagato.

"I have. Yahiko as well. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, and the challenges these shinobi will bring for us," spoke Konan.

"Hai," replied Nagato.

That night, Amegakure was silent. There were some who were awake from anxiety. Others were sound asleep, being sure to be fully rested for the challenges ahead. Those with ulterior motives worked out the final details of their plans, while some teams discussed strategy. The next day, everyone gathered at the arena for the start of the tournament.

"I welcome you all to Amegakure no Sato! I, the leader of this village, am amazed at the participation of all the shinobi villages in this special tournament. Today, and for the next several days, we shall witness these proud shinobi, as they demonstrate their skills, putting the pride of their villages on the line. As you are aware, the first part of the tournament will be an underground maze. The participants will have three days to make their way for the exit. Along the way will be several obstacles. The best will be able to succeed, while the others will fall. Today, I present to you the participants! The shinobi of Iwa!" shouted Pein.

The team from Iwa stood forward, getting cheers from different sections of the crowd. This continued as Pein introduced the groups from the different villages.

"And last, from the new village in Ta no Kuni, the shinobi of Ankokugakure no Sato!" shouted Pein.

The Ankoku group stepped forward. Though they didn't get as many cheers as the shinobi of the other villages did, the stadium was still roaring, much to the surprise of the six shinobi of the newest hidden village. After the cheering subsided, Pein gave a full explanation and timetable for the tournament. The maze portion would last for three days. There would be two days for the shinobi to rest. The next day would consist of battles between teams, assuming enough of the teams were able to make it through the maze. The following day would consist of the one on one matches, followed by the exhibition match between the winner and Pein. The opening ceremony for the tournament lasted for an hour, as Pein talked about the hardships endured by the villages in the past, as well as spending time talking about the pride of his own village. At end of Pein's speech, the spectators left to look into more of the specialty shops of the village. Pein walked down into the arena to explain the final details of the first round of the tournament.

"I'm glad to see you all here. I'm sure you're anxiously awaiting the start of the tournament," spoke Pein.

"I'll say! You still talk too much!" shouted Hidan.

"There are eighteen entrances to the maze, all at the perimeter of this complex; however, there is only one exit. Your job is to make it through all of the traps and find your way out within three days time. You will likely encounter one another in your travels. You may attempt to impede the other teams, but keep aware of the time. Also, a team will be disqualified if one of its members is killed. You will only be allowed what supplies you have with you now. If you attempt to leave through the entrance you will be disqualified. As for how the maze itself works, I will leave that to you to figure out. While there are some of you who already understand the basic mechanics of how the maze works, keep in mind that this will not give a severe advantage or disadvantage to any of teams. Are there any questions?" asked Pein.

The shinobi before him went silent, eager to begin the tournament.

"Very well. Each village has opposite entrances. All the entrances are marked by the village symbol. The three days begins as soon as the gates open. Good luck to you all," spoke Pein.

Each of the competitors made their way for their designated entrances, and eagerly awaited for the gates to open.

"All teams are in position. The tournament shall being... now!" shouted Pein over the loud speaker. The gates snapped open, and the shinobi ran straight into the tunnel network set up by Pein.

"This tunnel appears to be different from the one we used before," spoke Naruto.

"This one is a little wider. I guess it's to accommodate teams," replied Sasuke.

"It still reacts to chakra. My Byakugan can see how our chakra is being absorbed," spoke Hinata.

"We can see it with the Sharingan, too," spoke Sasuke.

"With our eyes, it should be possible to avoid using a lot of chakra. It will give us some edge, since we won't give out our whereabouts as easily as the other teams," spoke Naruto.

"Hai," replied Sasuke.

"Hinata-chan, can you see through the walls?" asked Naruto.

"I can try," replied Hinata, as she focused on her doujutsu.

"It's hard to see clearly, due to the chakra flowing into the walls, but I have a rough idea of how the maze is laid out," spoke Hinata.

"What can you tell us?" asked Sasuke.

"It seems like this maze goes down far underground. It looks like we have to do down and then back up. It's so twisted up, though. I can't say which is the right way," spoke Hinata.

"We'll probably end up having to go back and forth between levels," replied Naruto.

"A maze that works all three dimensions. That does add to the challenge. We already have some advantage in knowing that. The other teams might take a little time to catch on to that," spoke Sasuke.

"Itachi nii-san will likely figure it out quick. There might be other shinobi with doujutsu able to see it, too. We can't assume we're the only ones able to figure it out quickly," spoke Naruto.

"True. I didn't plan on lowering my guard, anyway. What appears to be the best way to go, Hinata?" asked Sasuke.

"There's a fork up ahead. It looks like there are more branches off to the right side," spoke Hinata.

"Let's give it a go, and see what happens," spoke Naruto.

The trio of Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata began on their way through the maze, being careful to avoid the traps Nagato promised them.

"You think this maze spans three dimensions?" asked Kisame.

"There appears to be chakra running down deep under ground. I can't see it clearly, but it's likely part of the maze network. It would take a lot more space to make a maze of two dimensions. This would be the most efficient way to make such a structure. Looks like there's an entrance to the next level down over there," spoke Itachi.

"I see it, too, hm," spoke Deidara, using a lens on his scope to allow him to see clearly.

"You two have the best tools for this kind of thing. I guess I'll just have to leave navigation up to you," spoke Kisame.

"That's the plan. We'll keep our eyes set on finding our way out. Kisame, you keep an eye out for traps and enemies," replied Itachi.

"Ah, I see. Alright, works for me," spoke Kisame.

The trio of Kisame, Itachi, and Deidara descended down into the next level of the maze. The pair of Itachi and Deidara kept a careful eye on where they had already traveled in the maze.

"Ho, would you look at that. Seems I found you already," came a voice from the tunnels.

"Itachi, do you see anyone?" asked Deidara.

"I see a group of chakra signatures over there," replied Itachi.

"It looks like there is a bright light in that direction. It must be another team... wait, it got dark suddenly," spoke Kisame.

"They're masking their approach. Get ready to fight," spoke Itachi.

"You guys are at a terrible disadvantage. We're used to fighting in the darkness," came another voice.

"I think I know those voices... it's one of the teams from Ankoku," spoke Itachi.

"Them, eh? I suppose they would know how to navigate in the dark, right?" asked Kisame.

"I suppose so," spoke Tsuki, as she pressed her katana to the back of Kisame.

"Sneaky, aren't we?" asked Kisame.

"You wouldn't know this, but our village lives by a different clock than the other villages. We live by night, as opposed by the day. The activities of our village are hidden within the darkness, sleeping away the day to work under the cover of the night," explained Kukai, "We're used to working in the dark. It's the best time for assassinations, you know. We're trained to specialize in working in dark environments."

"That explains how you got the name," spoke Itachi, as he turned to face Kukai.

"It does tell a lot, doesn't it," spoke Akari.

"Uchiha, looks like I'll finally get my chance. I'm a lot stronger than I was back then. You won't find me to be some pushover this time around," replied Kukai, as he extended all of the weapons hidden within his armor. His feet were covered in blades. Spikes emerged from over his hands and from his knees, as well as his shoulders.

"You don't have the advantage you think you do," spoke Itachi, as he drew his katana. His Sharingan eyes met with Kukai's.

"I can see you, can you see me?" asked Itachi.

"I don't need to see you with my eyes," replied Kukai, as he charged after Itachi. Itachi blocked a strike from Kukai's arm spike. He was forced to dodge a kick from Kukai, backing off. Kukai saw an opening, and attempted to ram Itachi with the spike emerging from his right knee. Itachi blocked the strike, and pulled out a small dagger. Itachi attempted to stab Kukai in the side, only for his blade to bounce off. Kukai backed off a little, waiting for another chance.

"I was careless for a moment, but you should know that this armor is a lot stronger than the one I wore during our last meeting. A normal weapon won't penetrate," spoke Kukai.

"Good thing I don't use normal weapons," spoke Itachi, as he charged chakra into his katana. The blade began to glow a dull red as it was empowered by fire natured chakra.

"I see. Well, as strong as that blade may be, it allows me to see you a lot more clearly. In the darkness, such weapons give you a disadvantage!" shouted Kukai, as he charged towards Itachi again. Kukai slammed his arm spike into Itachi's katana. Itachi was hoping to cut through it, only to realize the spike was stronger than he thought.

"I should mention that this armor is reinforced with earth chakra, making it harder than steel," spoke Kukai, as he did a high kick aimed at severing Itachi's head with the foot blades of his armor. Itachi was barely able to avoid it, receiving a cut to his face. Kukai ran at Itachi full force, thrusting his spikes towards Itachi. The Uchiha was put on the defensive. Itachi was able to block most of the strikes, able to see Kukai's movements clearly with the Sharingan. Metal hitting metal echoed throughout the tunnels as the two clashed. Itachi would receive a shallow cut every now and then, but gained no serious injuries, while Kukai was protected from minor hits by his armor.

"_Something's not right. With that armor, he shouldn't be able to move this fast. Either his strength is off the charts, or there is some secret to that armor that holds the key to defeating him,"_ thought Itachi, as he dodged another kick from Kukai.

"Is this the best the Uchiha can do? Perhaps your victory against me before was nothing more than dumb luck," spoke Kukai, as he put a spike into Itachi's shoulder. Itachi repelled Kukai with his katana. The Uchiha held his arm, noting he wouldn't be able to use his left arm for a little while.

"I grow bored with this, it's time to end it," spoke Kukai, as he charged at Itachi once again. Itachi held off his strikes, once again going on the defensive. Itachi kept flowing chakra through his katana, hoping to overpower the defense that was empowering Kukai's armor. Kukai started to direct his strikes to Itachi's left side, taking advantage of his disabled arm. Kukai was able to make a cut up Itachi's side. Itachi stepped back, stunned slightly by his injuries. After he last barrage of strikes, Itachi noticed something, and decided to test his observation by charging at Kukai. Kukai could only smile at the fight Itachi continued to put up, believing himself to already be the victor. Itachi was quickly forced on the defensive as Kukai thrust forward, aiming to impale Itachi on his knee. Itachi backed off, and took note of the attack.

"What, you seemed to want to go on the attack a few moments ago. What's the problem?" asked Kukai.

Itachi said nothing, as he took a defensive stance.

"Fine, if you won't attack, I will," spoke Kukai, as he charged at Itachi again. Itachi continued to block the thrusts directed at him. Kukai attempted to severe Itachi's head again, only for Itachi to repel the attack. Itachi switched to being the aggressor, forcing Kukai to raise his spikes in defense. Itachi increased the speed of his attacks, while departing from his fighting style, showing signs of desperation. Itachi's strikes no longer flowed evenly, making him look more and more like an animal backed against the wall. Itachi left a wide opening, allowing Kukai a clear shot at his heart. Kukai thrust forward, only to have Itachi spin at the last minute, and cut through the spike on Kukai's right arm. Itachi used his surprise to deliver a slash up through Kukai's body. Kukai fell back, spitting up blood.

"What... how..." muttered Kukai.

"Your chakra signature," spoke Itachi.

"But... only the Byakugan can..." muttered Kukai.

"You're right, I can't see the flows like the Byakugan, but I can still tell where chakra is concentrated and where it isn't. You purposely reinforced your initial strikes, knowing I would block, and avoided doing so with your other attacks, allowing you to maintain speed, and deliver hits. That's the secret to your armor, isn't it?" asked Itachi.

"Clever... that's right, I didn't plan on hitting you with half of my strikes... you win this time... Uchiha," spoke Kukai, as he passed out.

Itachi left Kukai to regroup with the other members of his team.

A loud clash could be heard as Kisame brought the Samehada to bear on Tsuki's katana.

"I was hoping you wouldn't make this easy for me. I expect a good duel from a member of Kiri's Nananin," spoke Tsuki.

"Oh, looking for a fight, are you?" asked Kisame.

"Can't let Kukai have all the fun. Now, let's go!" shouted Tsuki.

The pair brought their blades to bear once again. The tunnel walls cracked from the force of the blow. The area around the pair began to glow brightly as the two tapped into their stores of chakra. Sparks began to fly between the blades of the two before the force sent both back.

"Impressive. That's no ordinary weapon you have there," spoke Kisame.

"Likewise. It wouldn't be as fun with normal weapons, right?" asked Tsuki.

"I don't suppose it would," replied Kisame, as he ran towards Tsuki. The Ankoku kunoichi was pushed back by the force of Kisame's strike. Tsuki pulled back and took a swing at Kisame, aiming to remove his head. She ended up delivering a cut by the gills on Kisame's face. Kisame made a small grin as he pulled back his weapon and sent it back in Tsuki's direction. Tsuki was able to block Kisame's strike, but had trouble holding back Kisame and his great strength. Tsuki could feel the Samehada making contact with her shoulder. She could feel the weapon absorbing her chakra, messing up her control. She wasn't able to put as much power into repelling Kisame, allowing the shark-like nin to push his blade deeper into Tsuki's shoulder. When Kisame felt his weapon sink into Tsuki far enough, he pulled it back, ripping through her shoulder. Pieces of flesh and cloth stuck to the Samehada as Kisame pulled back. Tsuki's shoulder felt as though it were on fire. She placed her hand on her shoulder, feeling the blood rising up through her wound. She looked to where Kisame was. In her mind, the image of a demon appeared. Instead of backing down in fear, though, Tsuki renewed her determination, and went on the offensive, nearly catching Kisame off guard. Kisame was able to prevent would could have been a fatal blow. The blue man could feel the point of Tsuki's sword penetrating the skin on his chest. Tsuki pulled back and began slashing violently at Kisame. The shark-nin was able to use the size of his weapon to his advantage, preventing further injury. As Tsuki realized she wouldn't be able to break Kisame's guard with her current method of attack, she backed off.

"Not bad. I haven't had a duel like this in quite some time," spoke Tsuki.

"You're not too bad yourself. I thought you would be more of a pushover," replied Kisame.

"I'm not sure whether I should take that as a compliment or not," spoke Tsuki, as her expression changed from one of mild amusement to hardened determination, "The next will be the last. Let's end our duel with a showing of our best kenjutsu."

Kisame nodded in response. Tsuki charged her blade with earth chakra. The sword of bone responded by hardening. Kisame channeled his water chakra into the Samahada, making the sword glow an eerie blue, which showed up well in the darkly lit tunnel. The dim lighting changed as the pair continued to pour chakra into their blades. The part of the tunnel they were in became bright as day as the two finished their preparations for their attacks.

"Kenjutsu: Kouha! _(Sword Art: Shark-wave)_" shouted Kisame, as he swung the Samehada down. A shark of water came screaming out of his blade.

"Kenjutsu: Doga! _(Sword Art: Earth Fang)_" shouted Tsuki, as a spire of rock emerged from the tip of her blade.

A flash of chakra could be seen where the two jutsu met. The tunnel lit up as bright as day as the two jutsu pushed for dominance. Tsuki found she could do nothing as the fang her jutsu made cracked from fighting against Kisame's. Tsuki was knocked back down the tunnel by Kisame's jutsu. The impact made her cough up blood. She was knocked unconscious as her head hit a wall in the tunnel. Kisame approached her to make sure she was out before looking for the others. Kisame took note of a bright flash in the tunnels, and headed in the direction of it, believing it to be where another battle was taking place.

Hikari Kantsuu Kousen no Jutsu!" shouted Akari, as she put enough chakra into the tunnel walls to generate light for her jutsu. Rays of light shot out towards Deidara, who found himself at a heavy disadvantage.

"_Damn it, I can't keep dodging forever. I'm not cut out for close range combat. Where the Hell are Kisame and Itachi!"_ thought Deidara, as one of the light rays singed his shoulder.

"Your pathetic. You can't fight in short range combat at all, can you? What a shame," spoke Akari, as she charged at Deidara. She pulled out a dagger hidden within her skirt, and lunged towards Deidara. The former Iwa-nin felt the blade enter his shoulder. Instead of wincing in pain though, he cracked a small grin as he pushed himself off of Akari's weapon.

"What's so funny?" asked Akari.

"You'll see soon enough... Katsu!!" shouted Deidara.

An explosion wracked Akari's body. Deidara had taken the chance to plant an explosive on Akari while she was focused on attacking him. The explosion ended up collapsing part of the tunnel.

"I think I overdid it, hm," spoke Deidara, as he looked for a way around in order to regroup with the other members of his team.

"_What the Hell was that?"_ thought Itachi, as he heard a loud crash. Itachi reached the part of the tunnel collapsed by Deidara's attack.

"Figures... he would forget that this place wasn't made to handle his fighting style..." muttered Itachi. Itachi turned around to look for another way through the tunnel. After walking for several feet, Itachi ducked out of the way of a kunai aimed at his neck.

"You have descent aim for someone working in the dark," spoke Itachi.

"I got lucky. I can barely see you," spoke a voice from behind Itachi. The Uchiha turned around to see who had attacked him. The chakra of the person before him appeared to be irregular, having a venomous, corrupted glow about it.

"_What the Hell is with this guy?"_ thought Itachi.

"See something of interest with those eyes of yours. I hate to be left out of the party. Hijutsu: Kekkei Genkai Heigou! _(Secret Technique: Bloodline Limit Absorption)_" shouted the person before Itachi.

"What!?" shouted Itachi, knowing there was only one person alive able to perform the jutsu being used. Itachi found himself unable to avoid the venomous chakra wrapping itself around him.

"Who the Hell are you!?" shouted Itachi.

"That is not of your concern. I should tell you one more thing, though. There's another part to this jutsu... Hijutsu: Kekkei Genkai Fuuin! _(Secret Technique: Bloodline Limit Seal)_" shouted the person. Itachi felt the chakra burning his eyes. His Sharingan was forced away. As the chakra left Itachi, the Uchiha attempted to activate his doujutsu, but found himself unable to do so.

"Impressive, isn't it?" asked the man before Itachi. The being attempted to activate his newly acquired Sharingan, but found himself unable to do so.

"What the... he told me it would work... so why, why won't it!?" shouted the man before Itachi out of frustration.

"Seems you are ill informed of how the Sharingan works. It's not like the other doujutsu. One is not born being able to control it. The other person who uses that jutsu had to awaken his Sharingan just like everyone else," spoke Itachi as he pulled out his katana and charged at the man before him. Itachi charged a heavy amount of chakra into his blade as he swung out.

"Kenjutsu: Kaha! _(Sword Art: Fire Wave)_" shouted Itachi, as a wave of fire erupted off of his blade. The man before Itachi could only see the glowing blade of Itachi's katana as the fire erupted off of it. The man was caught fully off guard and took the hit directly. The man disappeared into the walls of the cave. Itachi made a set of hand seals, and pointed himself in the direction the man was sent.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)_" shouted Itachi, as a large fireball erupted into being before Itachi. The fire ball ripped into the wall of the tunnel, apparently incinerating the man fighting with Itachi before.

"Itachi-san!" shouted Kisame, as he came rushing towards Itachi.

"Kisame? I take it you took care of that kunoichi?" asked Itachi.

"Yeah, she's done for the time being. Stronger than I thought, but still not that tough," replied Kisame, "Have you seen Deidara?"

"I imagine he's on the other side of that," spoke Itachi, as he pointed in the direction of the collapsed portion of the tunnel. Itachi channeled enough chakra into the walls of the tunnel to allow Kisame to see what he was talking about.

"He would do something stupid, wouldn't he?" spoke Kisame.

"Katsu!" shouted a voice from the other side of the blockage. Itachi and Kisame backed off as the passage was blown clear again. The body of a kunoichi was thrown at Itachi and Kisame, knocking the pair down.

"Deidara!!" shouted Kisame and Itachi.

"What? I couldn't find another way around, hm," replied Deidara, "Oh, I see you found her."

Akari's injured body stirred a little, letting everyone know she was alive.

"So, what happened to the other two, hm?" asked Deidara.

"Knocked her out," answered Kisame.

"Cut him down," answered Itachi.

"Hey, Itachi, what happened to your shoulder?" asked Deidara.

"Nothing, really. It'll heal up by the time we find our way out of this mess. On that note, did you two happened to see anyway to progress further?" asked Itachi.

"No. The passage behind me leads to nothing but dead ends and a couple traps, hm. I almost lost my leg to one of them," replied Deidara.

"I didn't see anything," spoke Kisame.

"I see. Did you two see another team in the area?" asked Itachi.

"No," spoke Deidara and Kisame.

"Odd. I was attacked by some shinobi right before you blasted your way here," spoke Itachi.

"Did you? Was that the one you were fighting when I found you?" asked Kisame.

"Yeah. He had an odd jutsu that messed up my Sharingan. I'll have to find a way to break it when we leave here. I'm pretty sure I got the guy, though. He appeared to be severely lacking in any formal training," spoke Itachi.

"I see what you mean... from the charred remains in this wall, hm," spoke Deidara, while looking at the mark in the wall Itachi made with his fireball.

"We should get moving. Let's try to avoid any of the other teams while we're in here," spoke Itachi, as he got up.

"What about her?" asked Kisame.

"Leave her. She's a jonin, she and her team can take care of themselves. If they don't make it out of here, that's their problem," replied Itachi.

"Alright. Looks like there are some more paths up ahead, hm. I'll take point, since you can't use your eyes," spoke Deidara.

"Good idea. We'll keep guard," replied Itachi. Kisame nodded in agreement as the trio walked further down into the tunnel.

Akari stirred as she began to regain consciousness. She shook a little as she felt the pain catching up to her.

"_It would seem that I underestimated them a little. There's still plenty of time left in this tournament, though. Hopefully they didn't kill the others; it would be bothersome for me if they were to die, since I can't pass this part of the tournament without them,"_ thought Akari, as she picked herself up.

"_It would hinder my plans not to be able to reveal myself in the tournament finals,"_ thought Akari, as a small grin crossed her face. The tunnel surrounding her glowed a strange color as she thought over her plans, while looking for her "teammates."

_A/N: I thought of a couple different versions for the layout of Ankoku. My original idea was the have the village buried within the crater of an extinct volcano, but it didn't seem as practical as having the village simply run on a different timetable, so I opted to run with that idea. Those of you familiar with my other stories may recognize the name Ookami, but this Ookami is different from the one in Akatsuki's New Member/Mission. For those who don't know, Ookami, __狼__, means wolf. His first name, Seigai, can be spelled as __青__, which means blue. His wife's name, Amika, can be spelled as __雨美花__, where __雨 __means rain, __美 __means beauty, and __花 __means flower. The name of the Tsuchikage, Toshi Gantarou, can be spelled as __土師　岩太郎 __where __土 __means earth, __師 __means master (it can also mean war), __岩 __means rock, __太 __means thick, and __郎 __is a kanji associated with the names of sons. His second subordinate, Ake Takeru's (Gobi no Jinchuuriki) name can be spelled as __朱　丈__, where __朱 __means red and __丈 __means tall. The name Koukei Akari can be spelled as __黄　星__, where __黄 __means yellow and __星 __means star. Shirazaki Tsuki can be spelled as __白　月__, where __白 __means white and __月 __means moon. Kurohama Kukai can be spelled as __黒　空__, where __黒 __means black and __空 __means sky. The given names of this team are meant to refer to different aspects of the night. Tazaki Fue can be spelled as __田　笛__, where __田 __means rice fields and __笛 __means flute. Tazaki Ikuo can be spelled as __田　管__, where __管 __means pipe. Tazaki Hayashi can be spelled as __田　風__, where __風 __means wind. Their clan name is in reference to their country, The Land of Rice Fields (Ta no Kuni), while their given names refer to things associated with woodwind instruments, a reference to their previous allegiance with Otogakure. The name of Ankoku's leader, Sen Honou, can be spelled as __戦　炎__, where __戦 __means war and __炎 __means flame. Incidentally, part of the delay on this chapter is due to my taking my time with coming up with somewhat meaningful names for the characters introduced in this chapter. Thank you for reading, and please remember to review._


	3. Tension

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, if I did, the Raikage would end up owning the emo kid_

_A/N: Sorry for the delay; I've been caught up the thrills of life, minus the thrills. Enjoy the chapter!_

**Chapter 3: Tension**

"It would seem we have been lucky so far," spoke Sasuke.

"I agree. We have yet to run into any of the other teams running through this tunnel," replied Naruto.

"It's been easy to avoid everyone, since we can pick up on the locations of others so easily," spoke Hinata, "I doubt there is another team where all three members are doujutsu users."

"I wouldn't assume that. There are bound to be some in here who are looking for fights with other teams," spoke Sasuke.

"That is true, though, most will likely avoid others, so they may show their skills to the public in the second half of the tournament," replied Naruto.

"That's my thinking, as well," spoke Hinata.

"Of course. Caution never hurt anyone. I was also expecting there to be more traps. At least something that would be more of a challenge," spoke Sasuke.

"I've been wondering about that, too. Perhaps there are more traps near the exits. It would make sense to put them there," replied Naruto.

"Everyone would be more worn out and much more likely to fall for traps near the end rather than near the beginning," spoke Hinata.

"Agreed... there is a trap down the end of this corridor. It appears to be the only way to advance. Do you two agree?" asked Sasuke.

"I don't see any way around it," spoke Naruto.

"There is a way around it, but it would be much faster to find a way to disable the trap," replied Hinata.

"I see. Alright, let's see what this one is all about," spoke Sasuke.

The team of Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata approached the corridor. They took note of various seals on place in the wall. The chakra within brought forth a dim glow. They weren't loaded with enough chakra to be obvious, but they could be seen easily by trained eyes.

"They don't appear to be explosive tags," spoke Sasuke.

"I think I know what types of seals these are. They seem to follow the basic format of a space-time seal," replied Naruto.

"Space-time? So they may summon something. Interesting. If that's the case, then we have no way of knowing for sure what will happen if we activate the seals by mistake," spoke Sasuke.

"Naruto-kun, do you know any way to disable the seals?" asked Hinata.

"Hmm... juuken. _(gentle fist)_ If you use your juuken to disrupt the flow of chakra within the seals, it may cause them to not work properly," replied Naruto.

"You don't seem sure," spoke Sasuke.

"I know that messing up how a space-time seal works can cripple its ability to function properly, as they require precise control to use properly. Hiraishin could be broken easily if someone were to disrupt my seals before I could use them," explained Naruto.

"Well, if messing up the seals will ensure they don't work, then why do you seem so unsure?" asked Sasuke.

"He knows of my ability to use space-time seals. He may have accounted for my ability to disrupt them, and placed a second layer within the seals to act as a backup, should we damage the primary seal," replied Naruto.

"I see," spoke Sasuke.

"I can't see any evidence of such a mechanic within these seals. It should be safe to disable them," spoke Hinata.

"Are you sure?" asked Naruto.

"Positive," replied Hinata.

"Alright, let's go," spoke Naruto.

The team of three continued their approach into the corridor. When they reached the first of the seals, Hinata hit it with her juuken. The seal appeared to flash for a moment, then went inactive. The trio looked around carefully for any sign of something being brought into being in the area.

"It would seem you were right, Hinata. There is no backup in these seals," spoke Naruto.

"Hai. I will make sure to keep an eye out, in case there is a seal like that amongst these," replied Hinata.

The trio continued on down the corridor. Hinata disabled each of the seals the group ran into. Each seal did the same as the first; there would be a bright flash as the chakra of the seal was released, and then the seal would become inactive.

"There are only a few more left," spoke Hinata, as she struck another seal. Once again there was a bright flash. As the group continued on, Hinata paused, then pulled back Naruto and Sasuke.

"Hinata-chan, what is it!?" asked Naruto.

"That last seal had a backup! The second layer used the chakra of the first, making it impossible to detect with my Byakugan!" spoke Hinata.

"Shit!" shouted Sasuke.

Something appeared within the corridor. The group of three took a defensive stance, awaiting the appearance of what was brought forth.

"Ah, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san. I was wondering if I would meet you here or not. Seems your knowledge of seals still needs some work," came a voice from the corridor.

"I know that voice," spoke Naruto.

The pair of three looked on as the smoke filling the tunnel subsided. A pair of Rinnegan eyes stared down the group of three.

"Pein's Preta Path," spoke Naruto.

"Ah, Naruto-kun, it would seem you do remember some things from our previous encounter," replied Preta Path Pein.

"What was the ability of this one?" asked Sasuke.

"He can absorb all chakra based attacks. Ninjutsu is useless. Likely, the juuken will not work, either," replied Naruto.

"Is that possible?" asked Hinata.

"I wouldn't want to find out the hard way. Basic taijutsu and kenjutsu are the only way to defeat him," replied Naruto.

"This should be interesting, three on one," spoke Sasuke.

"I will acknowledge that you are aware of this bodies weakness. However, do not assume I have not worked on finding ways around it," replied Preta Path Pein.

"It wouldn't be interesting, otherwise," spoke Naruto, as he took a taijutsu stance.

"That stance... I see, you've been learning a couple things from Hinata, have you?" asked Sasuke.

"Hai. It would seem you've been taking pointers from Rock Lee," replied Naruto, commenting on Sasuke's stance.

"I've always wanted to fight alongside the two of you like this. Shall we?" asked Hinata.

"Let's go!" shouted Naruto, as he charged forward, followed by Sasuke and Hinata. Preta Path Pein formed a small grin as he prepared to take the first strike.

Naruto struck first, aiming his fist for Pein's midsection. The bulky individual took Naruto's hand, and deflected it. Sasuke saw his chance, and attempted to land a hit on Pein's face. Pein deflected Sasuke's strike with his other hand, apparently leaving himself wide open to Hinata's attack. The bulky man spun around quickly, releasing Naruto and Sasuke, and sending a kick towards Hinata. Hinata was able to catch Pein's foot, and swung around to land a hit on Pein's midsection. The man able to avoid a directly hit, taking a glancing blow to the side. Naruto and Sasuke appeared behind Pein, and readied to strike him from behind. To the surprise of the pair, Pein was able to duck both of their strikes, and send a pair of kicks at the two, knocking them back. The group of Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata once again stood before Pein.

"He shouldn't have been able to see us like that," spoke Sasuke.

"It's impossible for him to see from behind without one of his other bodies here... Hinata, do you see sign of any of his other bodies in a position to see this Pein's blind spots," asked Naruto.

"I don't see anything... wait... there are a pair of chameleons behind him," spoke Hinata.

"I see, so he prepared a couple of his summons in advance to work around his blind spots. Figures he would be able to use their eyes, too," replied Naruto.

"So we have to assume he can see us at all times, eh?" asked Sasuke.

"So it would seem. Too bad for him, I've racked up a lot of experience with such fights by challenging Hinata-chan," replied Naruto.

"Glad to see you are putting what you've learned to good use. Let's give it a go once more, shall we?" asked Hinata.

Naruto and Sasuke smiled as the three charged towards Pein's Preta Path once more.

"I see you figured out one of my tricks, but will it help you?" asked Preta Path Pein.

"There's only one way to find out," spoke Naruto, as he aimed a blow at Preta Path Pein's midsection. The man blocked the strike, only to have Sasuke direct a strike towards his head, forcing him to duck. Hinata headed behind Preta Path Pein, and motioned to strike the body down. Pein knocked back Sasuke and Naruto, aiming to block Hinata's strike. Pein was surprised to see Hinata taking out his summons.

"Now's your chance!" shouted Hinata, as the bulky Pein knocked Hinata back in retribution.

"Rasengan!" shouted Naruto.

Preta Path Pein smiled as he absorbed Naruto's attack. His grin faded upon realizing Naruto's strike was a diversion. Sasuke used the opening given to him to get behind Pein. The portly man had no time to react as Sasuke unleashed a barrage of strikes upon the man's body. Naruto and Hinata joined Sasuke working fast to disable their opponent. A finishing blow from Hinata finished off Pein's Preta Path. The body hit the ground, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"A kage bunshin?" asked Sasuke.

"No, that was the real one. He was reverse summoned upon his defeat," spoke Naruto.

"How can you tell?" asked Sasuke.

"I've learned to see space-time shifts with my Sharingan. It's something me and Hinata have been working on. It still can't track something like the Hiraishin, but at least it gives awareness that such a jutsu is being used," explained Naruto.

"You'll have to show that one to me sometime," replied Sasuke.

"Maybe; I was hoping to keep it to myself for a little while; wouldn't want to give you an edge over me in our spars," spoke Naruto, with a grin on his face.

"Ha ha, indeed. Let's go," spoke Sasuke.

The group of three continued on their way through the tunnel, looking out for further traps such as the one they had encountered.

In another part of the tunnel, Akari had gathered up and healed the other members of her team.

"Hey, I didn't know you knew iryou jutsu," spoke Tsuki.

"I thought it would be wise to learn such jutsu, just in case. I had initially planned to only use such jutsu for myself. I suppose it's one of the world's ironies that leaves me having to use my knowledge to the benefit of others," replied Akari.

"I see," replied Tsuki.

"I'm glad. This means I can have another crack at the Uchiha. I won't lose to him a third time," spoke Kukai.

"You may act as our leader, but your decision making skills hardly give you the right to such a position. I'll be taking over leadership duties from this point forward," spoke Akari.

"Oh? And I should listen to you for what reason?" asked Kukai.

"Because you're leadership led to us nearly being killed," replied Akari.

"Fine, if that's how you want to look at it, then so be it," spoke Kukai.

"Good. You'll have your chance against the Uchiha. If we make it to the finals, you'll get your chance then. Something tells me he won't lose before then. Is this acceptable?" asked Akari.

"Gah, whatever. I need time to repair my armor, anyway. I didn't intend to challenge him again during this phase of the tournament," replied Kukai.

"Wise choice. We should continue. We lost a lot of time recovering and fighting that team from Konoha. We need to avoid the other teams here in order to make it out of here on time. Agreed?" asked Akari.

"Agreed," replied Tsuki and Kukai.

"Good. Let's go," spoke Akari.

The group from Ankoku dashed through the sections of the tunnel before them, with Akari taking point. Even in her haste, she was careful to disable any of the traps that made it into her field of vision. After Akari personally disabled all the traps in a corridor, those with her began to question what they knew of the kunoichi.

"Hey, Akari, how are you able to see all these things so clearly? I didn't know you could read things so well," spoke Tsuki.

"I have my ways," replied Akari, as she threw an explosive tag at another trap before her. The tag ripped the trap to pieces.

"Perhaps I should have made you take point from the start. However, wouldn't it be better to avoid the traps altogether. You seem more than capable of being able to spot them," asked Kukai.

"I am aware. However, from what I can tell, the traps are heaviest through the tunnel shortcuts," spoke Akari.

"I wouldn't assume that, if I were you. You forget that one dead end corridor we found in the beginning. It was littered with traps, even though it was a circle. We ended up wasting several hours in that corridor.

"I remember. Don't worry about it, I know how to avoid running into such places again," replied Akari.

"If you say so, but I'm taking lead again, should you happen to lead us into such a place," spoke Kukai.

"So be it," spoke Akari.

The Ankoku team found themselves in a corridor littered with seals of all types. Some appeared to be explosive tags, while others appeared to be space-time seals.

"Interesting trap. I've never seen something like this before," spoke Tsuki.

"It seems to be something of a contradiction. Why would you risk summoning something into a corridor that's also littered with explosive tags?" asked Kukai.

"They may summon other weapons. Animals aren't the only thing that can be summoned through space-time seals," spoke Akari.

"I suppose," spoke Kukai.

"These are easy enough to disable. Disrupting the chakra balances causes them all to malfunction. These are the weakest traps I've seen in these tunnels," spoke Akari.

"I guess... shit! Did you miss that one?" asked Kukai, as he noticed something appearing behind the group. Several kunai were thrown at the team. Tsuki pulled out her katana and deflected all of the kunai.

"I was hoping that would get your attention," came a voice from behind the group.

"Who the Hell are you!?" shouted Kukai, as he took a defensive stance. The smoke around the person disappeared to reveal an individual with long orange hair, tied in a long ponytail on top of his head. The man's face was covered in piercings; his standout feature being the eyes of the Rinnegan.

"The Rinnegan!? Are you the one known as Pein?" asked Akari.

"So you are knowledgeable on some things. You are correct, I am Pein," replied the man before them.

"Doesn't he have control over six different bodies?" asked Tsuki.

"I've heard that. He may have different bodies working in different parts of the tunnels. I've heard each of his bodies have different jutsu, but I don't know what those jutsu are," replied Kukai.

"I wasn't aware of that much. Seems we'll have to go into this one blind," spoke Akari, as she pulled out several kunai. She threw them all in the direction of Pein, only to see all of them deflected by what appeared to be a barrier. Kukai and Tsuki were knocked back, as well.

"A barrier?" asked Kukai.

"That was no barrier! It was something else!" shouted Tsuki.

"Something else, but what?" asked Akari, as she prepared another round of kunai. She observed the same effect as her first attack.

"Alright, you can block that, then how about this?" asked Akari, as she flared her chakra, increasing the light around her, while she was working through hand seals.

"Hikari Kantsuu Kousen no Jutsu! _(Light Piercing Ray Technique)_" shouted Akari. The light around her turned into spears, propelling themselves towards Pein. Akari was smiling until she saw her jutsu turned back in the same way as her kunai were.

"He can block ninjutsu, too!?" shouted Akari.

"Useless," replied Deva Path Pein, "Such attacks are useless."

"Alright then, let's see you deal with this!" shouted the team of three, as they charged towards Pein. Pein frowned as he sent all of them crashing through the tunnel with his Shinra Tensei.

"It seems you Ankoku shinobi are not as strong as you make yourselves out to be," spoke Deva Path Pein.

"Uh... I don't believe it..." muttered Kukai. As he was nearest to Pein when he unleashed his attack, he found himself in the worse shape. His armor was torn apart, even where he had increased its density. Tsuki was unconscious. Kukai and Tsuki were knocked into each other, causing them the crash into the nearby walls, while nothing was in the way of Akari's body, allowing her to be knocked far down the corridor.

"Figures... he would manage to take out the team iryou-nin..." muttered Kukai.

"It seems luck is not on your side. The body sent to an activated trap is decided at random. Of my bodies, this is my strongest," spoke Deva Path Pein.

"I see..." muttered Kukai.

"My purpose is to slow you down. I am not about to kill anyone in here. You're on your own," spoke Pein. He was about to have his Deva Path summoned back, only to see another opponent before him.

"You... you are not a member of any of the teams sent in here," spoke Pein.

"You're right," spoke a man before Pein.

"Who are you?" asked Pein.

"Me? All in due time. It won't be fun if I reveal my identity too soon. I have to say, this tournament of yours is the perfect breeding ground for the next great conflict. Are you even aware of what you have done?" asked the man.

"What do you mean?" asked Pein.

"The chuunin exams have the same flaw. A replacement for war? What a joke! Instead of allowing an outlet for aggression, you've provided a breeding ground for it. This tournament of yours is even better at fostering the fires of war!" shouted the man.

"What brings you to this conclusion? I am aware of the chains of hatred that bring forth wars in the world of shinobi. These chains can be broken through the unification of the different nations. When they were forced to join together against a common foe, they forgot the past, and were able to move on to the future," replied Pein.

"Oh? This unification is temporary at best. Some people are simply unable to forgive the sins of the past. You must have seen some of the conflicts taking place in these tunnels. That one there tried to attack a member of a team from Konoha, out of a grudge he held against the man for actions that took place nearly five years ago. Do you think he's the only one who's taken such actions? I'm sure there are other teams doing the same," spoke the man.

"You are incorrect. I have been observing what has taken place down here. Most teams are focused on the objective of making it out of these tunnels as fast as they can. Very few are participating in combat; most are taking measures to avoid the other teams," replied Pein.

"Bah, so be it. But the final rounds of this tournament will bring to light my predictions for the future. We're on the eve of another great uprising in the shinobi world. Unlike the events leading up to the previous conflicts, the world appears blissfully unaware of the events set into motion," spoke the man.

"You would be in the minority in your beliefs," spoke Pein.

"Maybe. I grow tired of talking. There's only one thing I have an interest in!" shouted the man, as he ran through a long chain of hand seals. Venomous chakra erupted from the man and surrounded Pein.

"Let's see how you handle this one! Hijutsu: Kekkei Genkai Heigou! _(Secret Technique: Bloodline Limit Absorption)_" shouted the man. The chakra around Pein flared as it entered his body.

"Now those legendary eyes are mine!" shouted the man, "Struggle if you want, but once that jutsu takes hold, there is nothing you can do."

Pein frowned at the man. He quickly demonstrated the ability to move his body freely.

"Banshou Tenin!" shouted Pein. The mysterious man was pulled near Pein. He found himself with one of Pein's chakra blades embedded in his side.

"Impossible! How! Why can't I absorb your kekkei genkai... wait... this body... it feels dead... what the Hell are you!?" shouted the man.

"That is for you to figure out on your own. I will say this; your attempts to steal my doujutsu through this body are futile. As you are an intruder in my tournament, I have no problem with eliminating you hear and now," spoke Pein, as he plunged his hand into the man's body.

"What are you doing!?" shouted the man.

"I don't know who are what you are, but any attempts of yours to upset the delicate balance of peace this world has achieved end here. Shinra Tensei!" shouted Pein. Pein focused the point of origin for his jutsu at his hand, causing the body of the man he held to explode in a shower of blood and organs. Pein frowned at his blood soaked body.

"Intruders in my village will be dealt with swiftly and mercilessly," spoke Deva Path Pein, as his body was reverse summoned.

"This guy... perhaps we've underestimated him..." spoke Kukai, as he struggled to his feet. He took hold of Tsuki, and looked for where Akari had been thrown. They found her at the of the corridor. She appeared to be covered in blood from being thrown into the tunnel wall at high speed. She was busy healing herself when she was found.

"So, you two are alive. I'm afraid I couldn't do much. This wall was damaged by another conflict. Bad luck I was thrown into a wall with a jagged surface. None of my major organs were damaged, though. I suppose it was good luck in bad luck that saved me. Were you two able to defeat Pein?" asked Akari.

"No. Some other shinobi approached him. Pein identified him as an intruder, someone who isn't on one of the teams in the tournament. I don't know how someone managed to sneak past the best jonin of the shinobi nations, but Pein took care of him before leaving. Pein brutally killed that man like he was nothing, even though he had Pein trapped in this bizarre looking jutsu. Pein said he was only here to slow us down, not kill us. Seems he did an exemplary job," explained Kukai.

"I've almost restored by body. You two appear to be in need of rest. We'll take a break down there. It's a dead end created by the fight that took place here. We won't be found in there," replied Akari.

"Very well," spoke Kukai, as he took Tsuki into the corridor.

Itachi, Kisame, and Deidara continued their run through the tunnels. Even with Itachi unable to use his Sharingan, the group hadn't slowed in their run towards their goal.

"The number of traps are increasing, hm. Seems we are getting close to something important," spoke Deidara.

"Keep in mind they might be trying to bait us into a dead end," spoke Itachi.

"Not that dead ends are a problem for me," replied Deidara.

"Blowing a hole in the wall is not advised," spoke Itachi.

"I'm with Itachi-san, I don't want this place falling apart on us," spoke Kisame.

"Fine, have it your way... wait, there are some odd seals up ahead, hm. Flare up your chakra a little so you can see them," spoke Deidara.

"I see them. These are space-time seals, set to summon something here. They appear to set in all the corridors leading away from this place, except the one we came through," replied Itachi.

"Do you know how to disable them?" asked Deidara.

"Easily done. Which corridor looks to be the best one to take from here?" asked Itachi.

"Hm... the one above us. I can see a dead end down these two. It looks like someone backtracked through this one, from the imprints on the ground," replied Deidara.

"Very well, Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu! _(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)_" shouted Itachi. A fireball was sent up the tunnel, incinerating the seals.

"That should clear the path," spoke Itachi.

"Wait, one of the seals is absorbing part of your fireball, hm. It's sending something through!" shouted Deidara.

"What!?" shouted Kisame, "How could that happen?"

"Doesn't matter. Everyone, defensive stance!" shouted Itachi.

Deidara backed away from the body falling down through the tunnel. The team from Konoha found themselves face to face with a man with long, straight orange hair. The diagonal piercing he held in his nose made him standout, as well as his eyes.

"Pein-san?" asked Deidara.

"Hai," replied Human Path Pein.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kisame.

"I am here to make impede your progress," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Itachi.

"Hey, Itachi, do you remember what the abilities of each of his bodies are, hm?" asked Deidara.

"Hai, if memory serves, this body is able to manipulate the souls of others. He can instantly gain information from someone, as well as rip out a person's soul, killing them instantly," explained Itachi.

"I see you are well versed in my abilities," replied Pein, with somewhat of a frown.

"The shinobi who were jonin at the time of your invasion of Konoha are aware of most of your abilities, as discovered by Naruto and Jiraiya during their fights with you," replied Itachi.

"I see. While this information is somewhat discomforting, do not assume I haven't added to my abilities," spoke Pein.

"I was hoping you would have done something. This wouldn't be much of a challenge otherwise," replied Itachi.

"I wouldn't say that, hm," spoke Deidara, as he put his hands together in a familiar seal.

"Katsu!" shouted Deidara.

An explosion went off in front of Pein. The force of the blast was enough to cave in the walls of the tunnel in that area.

"We don't need to use that corridor, anyway. With any luck, we'll be able to block others trying to get to this point, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Good thinking. That takes care of two things at once," spoke Itachi.

"I was kind of hoping we would get to fight him, though. Kind of takes all the fun out of it when you go and end it just like that," spoke Kisame.

"If you would like to entertain a fight with me, I will not disappoint," spoke Pein's Human Path, from behind Kisame. The shark-nin jumped forward, out of the reach of Pein.

"That was a little too close for comfort," spoke Kisame.

"How were you able to get over there. There's no way you could have moved that fast, hm!" shouted Deidara.

"I am aware. I do not possess the ability to move at such speeds. However, since you seem to be aware of some of my abilities, you should be aware of one that uses space-time jutsu. It's primarily used for summons, but can easily move each of us around with ease, should there be need to do so," explained Pein.

"I see you've been working on ways to counter Naruto's Hiraishin. Impressive. Let's see how strong you are," spoke Itachi, as he pulled out his katana. Kisame followed suit by pulling out the Samehada. Pein pulled out a pair of chakra blades.

Kisame and Itachi charged in the direction of Pein, bringing their blades to bear against those of Pein. Both charged chakra into their weapons. Pein was able to hold off Itachi with his left arm, while dealing with Kisame using his right. Itachi found his katana lost chakra each time it made contact with Pein's chakra blade. The Samehada did not experience this affect, as both the Samehada and Pein's chakra blades negated each other's abilities to absorb chakra. Itachi aimed for Pein's head, while Kisame aimed for Pein's midsection. Pein was able to block both of their strikes. Deidara saw his chance to strike at Pein from behind while he was busy fighting with Kisame and Itachi. Deidara approached Pein from the rear, and attempted to plunge a kunai in his shoulder. Pein quickly turned around, and sent a kick at Deidara's jaw, knocking the former Iwa-nin on his back. Pein jumped back to avoid the swinging of Itachi and Kisame's weapons. Itachi and Kisame were surprised at Pein being able to see in his blind spot, but didn't give it too much thought as they were forced back by Pein's strikes. Itachi and Kisame jumped back to join up with Deidara.

"You alright?" asked Kisame.

"I'm fine, hm. I didn't think he would have a pair of summons acting as his eyes. There are two small animals behind him. They blend in to the tunnel fairly well; I can barely see them. I'm sure they would show as bright as day to a doujutsu user, hm," explained Deidara.

"Sorry to say I won't be able to give you that kind of assistance for the time being," replied Itachi.

"Have a plan?" asked Kisame.

"We need to coordinate our strikes and overwhelm him. Even if he has the speed, he should find difficulty in engaging all three of us at once. Deidara, I hope you've been working on your close range skills," spoke Itachi.

"They aren't well refined, but I can do something," replied Deidara, as he pulled out a kunai.

"There's no point in trying to sneak up on him, so we'll go in full ahead. Make sure he doesn't touch you. Go!" shouted Itachi. The three charged towards Pein again. Itachi aimed for Pein's midsection, only to have his strike blocked. Kisame attempted to sweep Pein off his feet, only to have his weapon knocked back. Deidara attempted to strike between Itachi and Kisame's strikes, only to see Pein move out of the way. Pein moved to strike Deidara in the head, forcing the blond to duck. Itachi went to hit Pein's arm, only to be blocked. Kisame struck fast, landing a hit on Pein's shoulder, ripping away part of the cloak the body was wearing. Pein spun around, knocking Deidara and Itachi off balance, and aimed a kick for Kisame's face. The shark-nin avoided the strike, and attempted to strike Pein in the midsection. Pein blocked Kisame's strike, then spun to deliver a blow on Deidara's left shoulder. The chakra blade damaged Deidara's ability to use his entire left arm. Deidara cursed to himself as he jumped back. Itachi attempted to get in close to Pein, and use his speed to overwhelm him. Itachi increased the speed of his strikes, and began to drive Pein back. The clang of metal grew loud through the tunnels as Itachi increased his intensity. Kisame kept a careful eye on the pair, looking for any chance at an opening. Pein went back on the offensive, swinging his blades at a higher speed, with even greater precision than he had been using. Itachi was being driven back. Kisame took note that Pein was too focused on Itachi, and made his move. Kisame went in from behind, hoping to deliver crippling blow to Pein, only to have Pein avoid the strike at the last moment. Deidara saw a momentary opening, and took it, delivering a hard kick to his face. Pein was knocked off balance, giving Itachi the chance to go back on the offensive, driving Pein back again. Kisame joined him, and the pair drove Pein against a wall. The two quickly backed off as they saw Deidara make his hand seal again. Pein had no time to react as he was blasted forward by a pair of insect bombs Deidara mixed in with Pein's summons. The summons were wiped out in the blast, removing the advantage Pein had. Pein himself was injured by the blast, but was far from being disabled, and resumed his kenjutsu duel with Kisame and Itachi. It appeared as though Pein's strikes had increased in speed and intensity. Pein had managed to land solid blows on both Itachi and Kisame, knocking the pair back. Their midsections were hit. While the physical injury amounted to nothing more than a scratch, they lost their ability to manipulate chakra. Kisame and Itachi were slightly off balance, inviting Pein to renew his efforts against the pair, this time driving them back in the wall. Deidara, taking note of Pein's open blind spot, approached from behind, and threw a pair of small explosives at Pein's shoulder. Pein turned around at the last second, preventing the explosives from hitting their mark. However, they still make contact with Pein, leaving him with a pair of burn marks on his back. Pein turned his attention to Deidara and initiated a series of strikes against his former subordinate. Deidara attempted to hold Pein off with a kunai, but found he was greatly outmatched. Pein gave Deidara's right shoulder the run through, pinning him to the wall of the cave. Deidara grunted in pain. With his left arm already disabled, Deidara found himself unable to attack. His ability to manipulate chakra was crippled by the interference from Pein's chakra. Itachi and Deidara regained their stances and resumed their fight with Pein. Pein was slow to turn around, receiving a bad scrape from the Samehada on this right side, while receiving a gash from Itachi's katana on his left. Pein felt his chakra being disrupted by the chakra absorbing capacity of the Samehada. Itachi and Kisame brought their blades against Pein's, and began knocking him back. Itachi was able to deflect Pein's blades, giving Kisame a clear shot at Pein's body. Pein's body was torn open by the strike from Kisame, knocking him flat on his back. Blood dribbled out of Pein's mouth, as the body coughed a couple times.

"Well done, gentlemen..." muttered Pein's Human Path, before his body was summoned away.

"He's gotten better, I'll give him that. To be able to hold off the both of us at the same time, with one body, that's something else. I don't know how that Naruto kid was able to beat him," spoke Kisame.

"His loss must have given drive to greatly increase his strength. It would seem that the winner of this tournament will have their hands full in fighting Pein when he's using all of his bodies," replied Itachi.

"Oi, you two, you mind pulling me off of this wall, hm?" asked Deidara.

"What, you don't want to 'hang out' with us anymore?" asked Kisame.

Deidara frowned at Kisame, thinking of something to do to him when he got free. Itachi pulled out the blade pinning Deidara to the wall.

"I'm surprised you can tolerate the pain that had to have caused," spoke Kisame.

"I have a high tolerance for pain. I wouldn't utter a word of pain even if my body was being crushed," replied Deidara.

"Masochist," spoke Kisame.

"Shark freak," replied Deidara.

"This is not the time or place," spoke Itachi.

"Oh, right. I suppose it's good luck in bad luck that, while both of my arms are going to be useless for a while, he managed to avoid hitting my scope. Let's continue on, and try to avoid any more places that have a lot of suspicious looking seals, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Let's," spoke Itachi. The trio climbed up through the corridor Pein appeared from, being more cautious in regards to traps involving seals.

In Pein's hidden office, Nagato looked out a window overseeing the entire village. Though his eyes appeared to be fixed upon the business taking place throughout the village below, he was viewing the actions of his paths.

"So, the teams from Konoha retained knowledge of the abilities of my different bodies. Still, there are some things they don't know about. I will enjoy surprising them all with the abilities they have yet to seen. It seems that will have to wait, though. Seems the leader of Kusa and his team are about to trip one of my seals. Who to send this time? Ah, I know a good pick for such a headstrong individual. Let's see how he handles this," spoke Nagato. A grin crossed his face as he prepared one of his bodies.

In the tunnel, Kamakusa Futoshi, the leader of Kusa, and his team were heading into a straight section of the tunnel.

"That was one Hell of a climb. I thought this was the exit, though," spoke a tall man with a katana on his back.

"Yeah, for real, all that climbing and nothing? What a rip off," spoke a shorter man with several weapons pouches hanging from his belt.

"Shut it, you two. You should have kept track of how many times we went down in comparison to how many times we went up. If you did, you would have known that we are still a good thirty meters below ground," spoke Futoshi.

"Hey, you told us you were sure that was the exit!" shouted the taller man.

"You must have misheard, Jin," replied Futoshi.

"I heard you make the same claim," chimed in the shorter man.

"Shut it, Teizaki! I said no such thing!" shouted Futoshi.

"If you say so," replied Teizaki.

"Seems as though there is no other way to go except straight," spoke Jin.

"It would seem so. This wreaks of being a trap," spoke Futoshi.

"There's a statement I agree with. Look, there are seals all over the place," spoke Teizaki.

"They aren't explosive tags. They are the kind used for summoning. They're susceptible to being disrupted by chakra flows. They're nothing to worry about," spoke Futoshi, as the large man demonstrated his knowledge through disabling one of the seals. Jin and Teizaki followed suit.

"This hardly seems like a trap that a jonin level shinobi would have trouble with. This Nagato character must have been in a hurry when he came up with this one," spoke Teizaki.

"This isn't just easy to deal with; it's too easy. There must be something we missed," spoke Jin.

"That's probably what he wants us to think, making us want to go back and waste time. Sometimes things are intended to be obvious. Remember, he wants to delay us. That's the objective of any and all of his traps," spoke Futoshi.

"Good line of thinking," spoke Teizaki.

"I didn't become the leader of our village through my dashing good looks alone," replied Futoshi.

"_About as dashing as a toad,"_ thought Teizaki.

"_That would work if he wasn't short and fat… well, not as short as Teizaki, but still fat,"_ thought Jin.

The group continued on until they heard a noise come from behind them. The three turned around to see smoke drifting down the corridor.

"What the Hell was that!?" shouted Teizaki.

"That's not possible. I hit each and every one of those seals," spoke Futoshi.

"You did. It seems there was something else to those seals other than what we initially noticed about them," replied Jin.

"You are correct," came a voice from down the corridor, "There are a couple of seals with a second layer to them. The embedding is perfect; even a doujutsu user is unable to see it. I've already tricked a couple of such individuals."

"Who are you?" asked Futoshi.

The smoke cleared the reveal a well built individual with piercings covering his face and shorter, orange hair.

"I am the one known as Pein," replied Pein's Naraka path.

"Oh, I see. So, this is the Pein Rikudou I've heard about. So, you decided to personally intrude upon us to slow us down. Interesting," spoke Futoshi.

"You would be the leader of Kusa, Kamakusa Futoshi. I remember you from the meeting a year ago," replied Pein.

"I remember your core body. Why don't you step out of the shadows and challenge me directly?" asked Futoshi.

"Is that what you want? Then win the tournament. For now, you will face me like this," replied Pein.

"Bah, fine. I'll use this as a warm up for the fights to come. Jin, Teizaki, say back, I'll take care of this one on my own," replied Futoshi.

"If that's what you want to do, then good luck," spoke Jin.

"Don't complain to us if he proves to be too much of a challenge for you," spoke Teizaki.

"Your men don't appear to have that much respect for you," spoke Pein.

"They respect me just fine, they just have a unique way of showing it," spoke Futoshi, while directing his killing intent towards the pair of jonin with him. Both appeared to shiver in response.

"Now then, I'm not one for conversation, let's do this!" shouted Futoshi.

"Very well," replied Pein.

Futoshi made a quick observation of Pein, deciding how to attack him. Noting his cloak was ideal for hiding weapons, he opted to use a pair of katana. Futoshi drew his swords and charged towards Pein. Pein pulled out a pair of chakra blades and repelled Futoshi's strikes. The sounds of their weapons making contact reverberated down the corridor. Futoshi kept aiming for Pein's head, getting close a few times, but missing. Pein was merely repelling Futoshi's strikes, not attempting to attack him directly. Futoshi quickly grew frustrated with his inability to land a hit on Pein. The leader of Amegakure noticed the desperation growing in Futoshi's strikes, and opted to allow the leader of Kusa to land a blow on the side of his head. Futoshi was smiling as his blade slipped past Pein's chakra blades and hit the side of Pein's head. To Futoshi's surprise, a clang was heard, instead of the sound of blood being spilled. Futoshi seemed puzzled, until he realized he didn't hit Pein's head, but rather, he had struck the piercings coming out of his ears.

"These are made of the same material as my blade. Hitting them will get you nowhere, " spoke Pein.

"Damn it! Jin! Teizaki! Get your asses moving!!" shouted Futoshi.

"Not so confident now, is he?" asked Jin.

"Always overconfident. I really do have to wonder how he ever became the leader of our village," replied Teizaki.

Jin pulled out his katana, and charged towards Pein, joining in Futoshi's kenjutsu duel with Pein. Teizaki began running through a series of hand seals.

"That's it, just keep him occupied for a minute or two, then I'll take care of him," spoke Teizaki.

Pein was easily able to fend off the pair of Jin and Futoshi. Jin found what he thought was an opening near Pein's legs, and attempted to land a hit, only to take a hit to his right shoulder. Jin took note that his chakra circulation was affected by the blade. Futoshi aimed towards Pein's midsection, hoping to catch him off guard as he was landing his blow on Jin. Futoshi was surprised when the man twisted to the side, and delivered a solid hit to Futoshi's midsection, knocking the air out of the large man, and sending him onto the ground. Jin quickly recovered, and resumed his assault, preventing Pein from delivering a finishing blow to Futoshi. Jin increased the speed of his attacks, easily repelling the pair of chakra blades Pein was wielding. Jin began to knock Pein back slowly with the ferocity of his strikes. Pein responded by putting more strength into his strikes. Jin was knocked off balance, allowing Pein to deliver a solid blow to Jin's midsection, knocking him onto the ground next to Futoshi.

"Now, move it, you two!" shouted Teizaki.

The pair of Kusa-nin nodded and quickly retreated.

"Ninpou: Roku Hikari no Joushi! _(Ninja Art: Six Arms of Light)_" shouted Teizaki. Light surrounded Teizaki's form, separating into six distinct forms. The forms solidified into three pairs of arms, each digging into one of the multiple weapon pouches on Teizaki's belt.

"Heiki Renda! _(Weapons Barrage)_" shouted Teizaki. Weapons of all kinds were thrown in the direction of Naraka Path Pein. The bulky individual pulled up his arms to guard, not having the speed to move out of the way in time. The arms around Teizaki moved at inhuman speeds, continuing the assault until they faded away. The number of weapons kicked up enough debris to eclipse Pein from view of the Kusa-nin before him. Teizaki breathed heavily upon the completion of his attack, breathing a sigh of relief at the apparently fallen foe.

"That was a close one, eh?" asked Teizaki.

"Impressive," spoke Pein, from behind the cloud of debris.

"Impossible!!" shouted the Kusa-nin before him.

"No one has ever survived that attack before! Not at such a close range!" shouted Jin.

The debris cleared to reveal a demonic creature in place of Pein. The creature before them had thick, rock-like skin, which was able to prevent the weapons from causing any harm.

"If it weren't this body, I would have lost," spoke Pein, as he returned to his normal form. The weapons lodged in his skin fell to the ground with several clangs.

"Alright, if that won't work, then let's go for a battle of the freaks," spoke Teizaki, as he began another string of hand seals.

"Ninpou: Roku Ankoku no Joushi! _(Ninja Art: Six Arms of Darkness)_" shouted Teizaki. A dark aura surrounded Teizaki in the same manner as the light from his previous jutsu. This time, the arms formed were much more bulky, appearing to favor strength over speed. Each arm pulled out a small dagger from Teizaki's belt.

"Let's see how you deal with this one," spoke Teizaki, as he charged towards Pein's Naraka path.

Pein responded by pulling out a pair of chakra blades, in an attempt to deflect Teizaki's strikes. Pein was able to block the first round of strikes, but was quickly being pushed back by the force behind Teizaki's attacks. Even though Pein had more speed than Teizaki, the best he could do was block Teizaki. Pein was soon up against a wall, prompting Teizaki to form another group of hand seals, while his other arms continued their attacks.

"Yari! _(spear)_" shouted Teizaki.

Each of the six arms surrounding Teizaki changed from having hands to having pointed tips. Each arm headed straight for Pein. Pein attempted to cut off the points before they could reach him. Pein knocked the first pair off, only to have one get to his right shoulder, forcing him to drop one of his chakra blades. Pein was able to take off one more before his other shoulder was pierced, forcing him to drop his other blade. The last spear headed straight for Pein's neck. Teizaki was grinning at his imminent victory, until he saw the point of his spear being deflected at the last second by the transformation of Pein's neck. The spear bounced off, and dissipated, along with Teizaki's other arms.

"Impossible…" muttered Teizaki, as he staggered backwards, suffering from chakra exhaustion.

"It would seem that jutsu of yours requires a substantial amount of chakra to maintain. You are done here," spoke Pein.

Pein was about to strike down Teizaki when Jin brought his blade to bear against Pein's.

"Now!" shouted Jin.

"Doton: Wareme no Jutsu! _(Earth Release: Fissure Technique)_" shouted Futoshi. The ground below Pein opened up, forcing Pein down to the lower levels of his maze. Teizaki took a kunai, and tied an explosive tag to it. He threw it down towards Pein, and detonated it when he felt it make contact.

"Damn pain in the ass," spoke Futoshi.

"And that was just one of his bodies? I'd hate to challenge him with all six," spoke Jin.

"No wonder this guy was able to put such a number on Konoha," replied Teizaki.

"At least he's gone for the time being. Let's keep moving. I don't want to end up not making it out of this damn place on time. I want another crack at him," spoke Futoshi.

"I need a few moments to recover, you know that jutsu of mine takes a lot of chakra, and I had to use both variations in order to get that bastard," replied Teizaki.

"Very well, we can afford a few minutes," spoke Futoshi.

The group out of Kusa took enough time for Teizaki to recover, then continued on their way through the tunnels. In his office, Nagato was smirking greatly.

"So, the hot headed leader of Kusagakure isn't as tough as he makes himself out to be, not that I find this to be of any surprise," spoke Nagato, "It seems another team is about to hit one of my traps... hmm… one of our own. Even better."

"Hey, Hidan, stop dragging ass back there!!" shouted Seigai.

"We're not going to get extra time just because we're from Ame!" shouted Amika.

"Hey, you all need to slow down. We're plenty ahead, even after we took out the other team from Kusa," spoke Hidan.

"We would be further ahead if it weren't for that damn ritual. Did you have to kill them!?" shouted Seigai.

"They went for it, so I went for it," replied Hidan.

"Gah, whatever!" shouted Amika.

"Hold up," spoke Seigai.

Amika and Seigai stopped in their tracks, allowing Hidan to catch up to them.

"Hey, don't tell me you're going to stop after yelling at me to speed up, jack ass!" shouted Hidan.

"There's a trap up ahead. A rather intricate one," spoke Seigai.

"Something that those special eyes of yours can see, eh?" asked Hidan.

"Yeah, sure," spoke Seigai, who's red eyes now held a three point start that divided the iris' of his eyes into three sections.

"Don't mock Seigai's Sogekigan, _(Sniping Eye)_" spoke Amika.

"Feh, whatever. So, what of this trap," asked Hidan.

"The corridor up ahead is littered with seals. Some are explosives, while others are space-time seals," replied Seigai.

"Can't we go around?" asked Hidan.

"We could, but the other paths around here would add several hours to our journey. It would be best to just go straight through," replied Seigai.

"What's the plan?" asked Amika.

"Scouts first," spoke Seigai.

Amika nodded, and the pair began to make a chain of hand seals.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! _(Summoning Technique)_" shouted Amika and Seigai. A pair of wolves appeared before the pair of summoners.

"You two check the corridor up ahead, and take a close look at the mechanics of those seals. Disable them if you can, but be careful not set any of them off," spoke Seigai.

"Will do, Seigai-sama," replied one of the wolves, as the pair dashed off down the corridor. Seigai used his doujutsu to keep an eye on the pair and their progress.

"What are those bitches you summoned doing?" asked Hidan.

"Do not insult our summons!!" shouted Amika, as she knocked Hidan on the head.

"Don't waste your time on that prick, Amika. He is how he is, and nothing we can do will ever change that," replied Seigai, "and to answer your question, they are studying the seals and attempting to disable them."

"Whatever," replied the Jashinist.

After several minutes, the pair of wolves returned to divulge the information they gained by observing the seals up close.

"Were you able to disable them all?" asked Seigai.

"Most of them, but not all of them. There are several dual layer seals. We can't disable them without setting them off," replied one of the wolves.

"I thought so. I recognized the pattern. That confirms it. I have a pretty good idea what those seals are for, too. Alright, you two did your part, you may leave," spoke Seigai.

"Hai!" shouted the pair of wolves in unison. Both disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"They're rigged to summon something, aren't they?" asked Amika.

"Yeah, and I know what they're going to summon," replied Seigai.

"Oh, and what would that be?" asked Hidan.

"One of Pein's bodies," replied Amika.

"Eh? Well, hey, he's on our side, right? He'll just let us through," spoke Hidan.

"You really are simple, aren't you? He can't do that. He has to make things even for all the teams. He can't show favoritism by allowing us free passage. We'll have to fight him. Not that I have a problem with that," spoke Seigai.

"For real? Seriously? Well, I wouldn't mind giving that prick of a leader the run through, anyway. So, you going to set one of those things off?" asked Hidan.

"Have to. We can't avoid them, and we can't disable them. We do have an advantage, though. Since we know what they are for, we can take measures to incapacitate Pein before he can do anything to us. Let's see… we might as well set off the seal nearest to us. If we place a couple of explosive tags around it and set them to detonate on Pein, he won't be in any shape to give us trouble," spoke Seigai.

"You mean we're going to take the easy way out? What's the fun in that?" asked Hidan.

"He's not coming here to kill us; he's coming here to delay us. I bet he's counting on our willingness to fight him," spoke Seigai.

"I want to chance to attack him head to head so much, it hurts, but we have to avoid delays. We need to do it this way," replied Amika.

"Bah, pansies. Do whatever you want," spoke Hidan.

"It's not like you really have a say on the issue," replied Seigai, as he and Amika set the last of their counter traps.

"Okay, all set. Let's do it," spoke Amika. Seigai nodded in response.

The pair activated the tags they placed around the seal, then promptly activated the seal, achieving the desired effect. The pair backed off, and watched a poof of smoke indicate something had been summoned, followed up by the sound of an explosion.

"There, that should take care of that," spoke Amika.

"It would seem so. I can't see him," replied Seigai, "He likely has it set so that his bodies are summoned away if they take enough damage."

"Whatever, let's get moving then," spoke Hidan. The priest opted to advance before the smoke cleared. Seigai didn't appear to care, until something caught his eye.

"Look out!!" shouted Seigai, as he pulled Amika out of the way.

"Look out for what… fuck!!" shouted Hidan, as a serrated blade gave his body the run through. The smoke cleared to reveal a pair of damaged mechanical arms lying near the summoned seal, and Pein's Asura path, wearing the frown showing his body was in attack mode.

"You could have warned me, you know! This blade fucking hurts like Hell!" shouted Hidan.

"You should know not to walk ahead into a place where your vision will be obscured, baka!!" shouted Seigai.

"Are you done your bickering yet?" asked Pein, as he pulled back his blade.

"Figures you would use this body against us. It's the only body that wouldn't have been disabled by our little trap," replied Seigai.

"Truth be told, I came here on a whim. It would seem that luck is not on your side. That said, I will not go easy on you, just because you are a team of my village," replied Pein.

"I'm well aware of that fact. Amika, ready?" asked Seigai.

"Hai," replied Amika.

"Hidan, can you still fight?" asked Seigai.

"Yeah, yeah, I've had worse done to me before," replied Hidan.

"Alright then, let's see how you deal with this one, Pein," spoke Seigai, as he rapidly went through a chain of hand seals.

"That's…" muttered Pein.

"Suiton: Bakusui shouha! _(Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave)_" shouted Seigai.

"Bah!! Not in here!!" shouted Hidan, as Seigai spit out enough water to viciously flood the tunnels. Hidan was swept down the corridor, while Amika and Pein knew to anchor themselves.

"Suiton: Suisou Sattou no Jutsu! _(Water Release: Water Spear Rush Technique)_" shouted Amika, after making a quick chain of hand seals. The water ahead of Seigai took the form of several spears, rushing towards Pein. The mechanical man barely had time to raise his defenses after being hit by Seigai's jutsu. The spears tore into one of the remaining pairs of arms Pein's Asura Path had, reducing it to one pair of arms.

"Not bad; you managed to take away one of the combat advantages I have with this body. Do not think this means you have managed to best me, though," spoke Pein.

"Hardly, that wasn't meant to finish to job," spoke Seigai, "Rather we…"

Seigai was cut off by a scythe rushing past his head. The scythe tore into Pein's body, knocking him back.

"Fuck if I'm going to let you two have all the fun!!" shouted Hidan, as he pulled himself down the corridor along the cable of his scythe.

"That's all good, but you almost hit me with that piece of shit you call a weapon!" shouted Seigai.

"Blah, blah," spoke Hidan, as he emerged in front of Pein. Hidan was quick to rip his scythe out of Pein's body, damaging the mechanisms for his remaining left arm. Hidan took note of this, and pinned Pein down by his right arm with a couple of his pikes.

"Hit him with something while he can't move!" shouted Hidan, as he backed off.

"Heh, yeah, sure," spoke Seigai, as he ran through a chain of seals.

"Fuuton: Kuukijin Bakuha no Jutsu! _(Wind Release: Air Blade Blast Technique)_" shouted Seigai, as he released a blast of air from his lungs. Hidan was barely able to get out of the way of the jutsu. The walls along the tunnel was scarred deeply as the blast approached Pein's body. The mechanical man was able to free himself from the ground, but was unable to make it out of the way of Seigai's attack, taking it head on. Pein's Asura path was torn apart by the attack. Pieces of the bodies mechanics scattered down the corridor as the body was completely demolished.

"Well, that wasn't so bad. Perhaps he's not as tough as I thought," spoke Hidan.

"It was only one body. His greatest strength is the ability to work as perfect team with his six bodies. Had he approached us as such, our victory would not have come as quickly," spoke Seigai.

"And though I hate to admit it, Hidan, with your help, we were able to perform as the perfect team, if only for a moment. That's also part of how we were able to defeat Pein so easily," replied Amika.

"Oh? Now you're grateful about having me here? Hah, I just wanted to get a piece of him. If it happened to work out well, then so be it, now let's go. I want to make it to the next part of the tournament. I'll have more chances at making sacrifices during the fights," spoke Hidan, as he led the way down the corridor.

"Now he's rushing… let's go, Amika!" shouted Seigai.

"Hai!" shouted Amika, as the pair followed Hidan down the corridor.

Pein's Asura Path appeared behind Nagato, in all of its parts. The recently restored Naraka path was quick to summon the Naraku no Ou _(King of Hell)_ and restore the damaged body.

"That was my quickest defeat in this tournament so far. Those three would seem to have great potential. They could go far if they learn to work better as a team. Seigai and Amika already have that. Hidan can cover for their weaknesses, if they learn to work together. I look forward to seeing them later on in the tournament. Hmm… it would seem another team is close to one of my trap corridors. Let's see how they fare," spoke Nagato.

In another section of the tunnels, Gaara was leading his siblings through Nagato's maze. They were nearing the end of the tunnels when Gaara had them stop.

"What is it Gaara?" asked Kankuro.

"There are several seals laid throughout the corridor ahead," replied Gaara.

"Can we get around it?" asked Temari.

"That is not possible. All the other corridors lead back down. We must go this way to move forward," replied Gaara.

"You can use your sand to disable them, right?" asked Kankuro.

"Along with your puppets. Precision is most important when disarming seals," replied Gaara.

"Works for me," replied Kankuro, as he summoned Karasu.

"What kind of seals are they?" asked Temari.

"Several explosive tags, but they're merely distractions. The small seals appear to be summoning seals," replied Gaara.

"So, that's why you stopped, instead of using your sand to guard against the explosions," spoke Kankuro.

"Correct. The explosive tags aren't the problem," replied Gaara.

"Do you have an idea of what they would summon?" asked Temari.

"They could summon many several things. My best guess would be either a strong shinobi, or a powerful summon. I have a way to deal with either. It appears that all of the seals are linked in some way, so they likely are set to summon the same thing. That said, it would only take one to bring forth the intended trap. We must be careful with how we disable them," explained Gaara.

"Alright, I'll take care of disarming the summoning seals," replied Kankuro.

"I'll take care of the explosive tags," spoke Gaara, as he summoned his sand, and smothered the explosive tags. Though each one detonated, the compressed sand surrounding them prevented them from bringing harm to either Gaara and his siblings or the tunnel. Kankuro followed Gaara's sand with Karasu, which was picking apart the summoning seals. After Kankuro finished with one, he moved onto the next. Within a few minutes, all of the seals in the corridor were disabled.

"That's the last of them, Gaara," spoke Kankuro.

"No, they are still active. They have a second layer that is part of how they are linked," replied Gaara.

"How can you tell?" asked Temari.

"The same way I've been able to navigate the tunnels. Since the tunnel walls have many earth based materials, I can feel out the properties of anything connected to them with my chakra," explained Gaara.

"Makes sense. Can you disable them, then?" asked Temari.

"Second layer seals are both difficult to make and disarm. I can try, but be prepared to deal with what they summon," replied Gaara.

Gaara sent his sand after the first seal in their path. He attempted to further disrupt the seal with his chakra. He appeared to succeed, and prepared to take care of the next; however, Gaara noticed a reaction from the first seal.

"No good; they are set to go off if one of the seals is broken," replied Gaara, as he took note of which seal had activated, and sent his sand to cover the summoned target. A cloud of smoke signaled that activation of the seal.

"Sabaku Kyuu! _(Desert Coffin)_" shouted Gaara, covering the target immediately. The smoke disappeared to reveal a figure trapped within Gaara's sand.

"Sabaku Sousou!" shouted Gaara, appearing to crush the target. However, no blood appeared, leaving Gaara with a confused expression.

"There _was_ something there, right?" asked Kankuro.

"It escaped," replied Gaara, while turning to look behind the group.

"Ah, so you noticed," came a feminine voice with a masculine overtone.

Gaara threw several suna shuriken in the direction of the voice. The person owning it ducked and dodged the projectiles.

"Those eyes… you are the leader of this village," spoke Gaara.

"Ah, so you remember my identity. In this form, I am Pein," replied Pein's Animal Path.

"How were you able to escape my sand?" asked Gaara, though he seemed to be looking down the corridor past Pein, rather than at Pein.

"Seems you already have an idea. It does indeed involve those seals. It's a trick I picked up on from a certain blond friend of yours," replied Animal Path Pein, as she made a familiar chain of hand seals.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! _(Summoning Technique)_" shouted Pein. A dog, featuring Pein's eyes and piercings appeared before the Suna team.

"Interesting pet you have," spoke Kankuro, as he sent Karasu after it.

"I'll take care of this one, you guys take care of him," spoke Kankuro.

Gaara nodded, as he sent a wave of sand down the corridor towards Pein.

"No, not yet," replied Pein, as she summoned another creature, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared, nothing could be seen.

"She's hiding," spoke Gaara.

"Can you find her?" asked Temari.

"I can," replied Gaara, as his sand quickly got hold of something, and began to cover its form.

"Optical camouflage will not work against me," spoke Gaara.

"Pein removed herself from the summon, and sent it away, facing Gaara and Temari on her own.

"I see. So, that's how you dealt with the seals. Several of the teams that have run into my trap have access to a doujutsu of some kind. Others are using Doton no Jutsu _(Earth Release Techniques)_. As I've confirmed the futility of hiding, allow me to take a more direct approach," spoke Pein, as she brought forth another summon.

"What's with all these summons?" asked Temari.

"The information we have on Nagato and his Pein Rikudou states that each body that is part of Pein has a dedicated ability, and can use nothing beyond that ability," explained Gaara.

"So this one is a summoner? Alright, at least we know that much," spoke Temari.

The summon that appeared out of the smoke before Pein took the form of a armadillo with Pein's eyes and piercings.

"This one, as his last, appears to be an offensive type. I'll take care of the summon, you take care of Pein," spoke Gaara.

"Sure," replied Temari, as she rushed past Pein's summon. The beast attempted to knock the Suna-nin away from a path to its master, but a wall of sand prevented this.

"I'm your target," spoke Gaara.

Further down the corridor, Kankuro was fighting off Pein's dog summon. Karasu was able to weave around it's attacks. Kankuro was safely out of range of its strikes. Karasu pulled out a pair of blades, and began to spin, gaining the attention of the summon. Karasu headed straight into the body of the summon, easily tearing its body in two. Karasu burst through past the summon, covered in its blood.

"That was too easy. That ferocious looking thing looked like a challenge," spoke Kankuro, as he prepared to go back down the corridor to see how Gaara and Temari were doing. Kankuro stopped when he heard growling coming from behind him. Kankuro had Karasu block a strike that would have decapitated the Suna-nin.

"What the Hell!?" shouted Kankuro, as he noticed there were now two dogs in place of the one.

"This is insane. It's bad enough they look like freaks, but they have to have some strange ability, too!?" shouted Kankuro, as he backed away from the pair of beasts.

"Alright, then, if there's more of you, then I'll make it so there's more of me," spoke Kankuro, as he brought forth another puppet.

"Washi, let's do this," spoke Kankuro. Kankuro's new puppet had an appearance similar to that of Karasu. The differences being it's armor was white, and its limbs were thicker than those of its counterpart. The face appeared to have a beak, giving it more of a resemblance to a bird. Two limbs on the back of the puppet appeared to act like wings.

"Let's see how you deal with this pair," spoke Kankuro, as he sent his puppets forward, each one targeting one of the summons. Kankuro was careful to avoid splitting the beast again, surmising it would only add to his problems. Karasu launched poisoned senbon into the first summon, hoping the poison would slow it down. The beast howled in response, and smacked Karasu against the tunnel wall. Kankuro pulled Karasu out of the way of the next strike from the beast, which would have smashed Karasu. The puppet opened one of its arms, and launched several poisoned kunai at the beast, gathering the same reaction as before. Karasu was damaged by the next hit, losing its legs from the force of the hit it took from the summon Kankuro pulled Karasu back as he shifted his focus to dealing with the other summon. Washi's wings opened up to reveal several kunai in place of feathers. Kankuro sent the kunai at the second beast, and pulled Washi back, to avoid the beasts retaliatory strike. Kankuro took note that the pair of summons acted similarly, not appearing to be able to learn from each other's moves.

"_I see, they're not linked, so they can't readily learn from one another. That gives me an advantage; if I can take one down, I can take the other down. The question is how? They're too big to trap in Kuroari. I can damage them, but if I split them, that'll just leave me with another opponent to deal with. That leaves only one option; wear them down, and wait for Gaara and Temari to defeat the summoner. The summons should go with her,"_ thought Kankuro, as Washi pulled out a katana to deflect a strike from the summon it was fighting.

Kankuro noticed the pair of summons were attempting to work together. This prompted Kankuro to keep the pair separated. The first summon used a katon jutsu _(fire technique)_ to strike at Karasu. Kankuro pulled his puppet out of the way, and fired a pair of smoke bombs in the direction of the creature. Washi folded it's wings against a similar katon jutsu. The wings metal form prevented the fire from damaging the wooden parts of the puppet. As the jutsu dissipated, the puppet fired a round of kunai from a compartment in its chest, all focused on one of the summon's legs. The beast let out a howl as it lost use of its leg. Kankuro saw his opportunity, and disabled the other front leg, causing the beast to fall on its face. This action enraged the beast further. It responded by attempting to stand on its hind legs. The height of the tunnel made this task impossible, rendering the beast incapacitated. Kankuro sent Washi to aid Karasu, going for the front pairs of legs. The second beast fell to the same fate of the first. Both roared in pain and anger at what Kankuro had brought upon them. The pair of beasts launched another katon jutsu in response. Kankuro pulled himself and his puppets out of its range, and kept a careful eye on the beasts to see if they had any more tricks up their sleeve. They attempted to push forward, but made little progress, ceasing their efforts on striking back at Kankuro.

"Good thing this place doesn't really leave a lot of room for creatures that size," spoke Kankuro, as he looked in the direction of where Gaara and Temari headed.

Further along the tunnels, sand exploded against the form of the creature Gaara was fighting. The armadillo had tucked itself into a ball, and began rolling towards Gaara. Gaara responded by forming a solid sphere of sand around him. The sphere took the full impact of the armadillo's strike. Gaara held his ground and began to manipulate the armor shell around him. Spikes began to protrude from the form of the sphere, pushing the armadillo away. Its armor shell protected it from any harm. The beast stood back, and took at look at its target. Gaara, upon noticing the beast had stepped back, broke his form to stare at the beast eye to eye. For a moment, the pair did nothing but attempt to measure the strength of the other. The moment of silence was broken when the armadillo fired off several needles from the ends of its fingers. Gaara's shield of sand blocked each projectile. The armadillo responded by throwing large rocks it pulled out of the tunnel walls. The shield of sand was also capable of repelling them. The armadillo roared as it curled up in to a ball, and prepared to charge Gaara once again. Instead of retreating into an armor shell, Gaara opted to pull up a wall of sand, halting the progress of the creature.

"Your defense is powerful. Conventional jutsu will have no effect. Let's see how a well your defense holds against this," spoke Gaara, as he ground the minerals of the tunnel down to increase his supply of sand. The newly formed sand approached Gaara's hand and began to take the form of a weapon.

"Saikou Zettai Hougeki: Shukaku no Houkou, _(Ultimate Absolute Attack: Shukaku's Halberd)_" spoke Gaara, as the sand forming in his hand took the form of a halberd.

The armadillo continued to wear down the wall of sand Gaara had created. Gaara could sense his wall being eroded away. Gaara stood at ready, waiting for his wall to collapse. Within the next several seconds, the wall was torn through, and the armadillo rushed towards Gaara. The kazekage took his weapon, and thrust it into the form of the armadillo. Gaara was knocked back by the force of the beast's momentum; however, the beast halted upon being struck by Gaara's weapon. The halberd had pierced the armor of the beast. The creature rolled back, and pulled out of its armored shell. The beast screamed out from being injured. Gaara took note of the beast's exposure of its soft underside, and let forth a barrage of suna shuriken. The beast roared further. The force of the weapons the beast was struck with knocked it on its back. Gaara noticed the armadillo was struggling to get up, but was unable to do so. Gaara kept a careful eye on the beast for a few moments, making sure it was incapacitated, before deciding to join Temari.

Temari and Pein's stare down lasted only a few seconds, before Temari opened her fan, and swung it towards her opponent.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu! _(Cutting Whirlwind Technique)_" shouted Temari. Violent winds were sent down the corridor. Pein appeared to disappear in the debris thrown about from the destruction of the corridor. Temari smirked at what she believed to be an easy victory.

"You know, you should be a little more discreet. You could collapse this tunnel if you continue to attack me like that," spoke Pein, from behind Temari. She appeared to be unscathed. Temari swung her fan again, only to see Pein disappear before she could be hit.

Pein pulled out a chakra blade, and ran towards Temari, landing a hit before Temari could respond to Pein's new location. Temari felt her chakra flow being disrupted from the strike, but was able to block the next with her fan.

"Oh, not too bad, I was hoping you would give me some kind of challenge," spoke Pein. Temari smiled as she swung her fan again. Temari acted on the assumption that Pein was moving with speed, meaning she wouldn't be able to evade her attacks if she was close. Temari thought she had Pein, only to see her disappear again.

"How is that possible. There's no way you could do that at this range," spoke Temari, as she instinctively swung around to block another attack from Pein. Her instincts proved to be correct, protecting her from taking another direct hit. Temari noticed that Pein appeared behind her in a slightly different position from before. Pondering the reasoning behind that, Temari staved off another sequence of strikes from Pein's chakra blades before swinging her fan again.

"I would hope you would have learned by now your jutsu will not hurt me," spoke Pein.

Temari smiled as she continued to block strike after strike. Temari switched to using her fan as a club for the time being. Pein had the better speed between the pair, leaving Temari in a position where she was unable to attack. Temari was slowly being knocked down the corridor. Pein came close to hitting Temari several times. Temari took note that even a near miss disrupted the flow of chakra in her body.

"That's a strange weapon you have," spoke Temari, as she blocked another strike from Pein.

"It's unique to me, a holder of the Rinnegan," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Temari. The pair could hear several crashes coming from down the corridor, as the pair moved closer to where the other battles were taking place.

"Well, as much as I would like to continue this show, I think it's about time for it to end," spoke Temari, as she leaped back, and swung her fan again. Pein smiled in response.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" shouted Temari. Her wind once again went rolling down the tunnel. Pein was prepared to evade when she noticed she was not the target of the attack. Temari took a couple more swings, all of her jutsu missed Pein.

"I couldn't have worn you down so quickly. Do you have problems with hitting your target?" asked Pein. Temari answered with a grin before performing her jutsu again, this time at the corridor behind the pair.

"What are you doing… wait… you couldn't have!" shouted Pein.

"I remember what you and Gaara were talking about earlier. You said something about seals and a trick you picked up from a blond. I'm guessing by trick, you mean some kind of space-time jutsu. That's how you were able to avoid my attacks without taking a scratch. If it was speed, I would have hit you by now, even if said hit was nothing more than a tear in your cloak. Then I noticed that whenever you would appear and reappear, you wouldn't appear in the same place twice. I figured that meant it used seals that could only be used once. After realizing all this, I decided to take a defensive stance, and see how far you would push me down the corridor. I figured you would stop if we got too far from your seals. Seeing as you slowed your attacks at this point, I figured we were close," explained Temari.

"Ah, very good. You figured out how to disable my jutsu. If Gaara didn't have the ability to pick up on the seals I used, you would have never stood a chance. Well, just because you took one part of my strategy away doesn't mean I don't have more tricks to use," spoke Pein.

"Seeing as you can only summon, I doubt your tricks will amuse me that much," spoke Temari, as she charged a large burst of chakra into her fan.

"Daikamaitachi no jutsu! _(Great Cutting Whirlwind Technique)_" shouted Temari.

"So you were holding back… perhaps I was a little careless," spoke Pein, as she took the hit head on. She disappeared in a cloud of smoke once again, making Temari look behind her to see if Pein was there. Upon seeing no one, Temari investigated the place where Pein was. She took note of the blood splattered along the ground where Pein was standing.

"Looks like I got her this time," spoke Temari.

As Gaara and Kankuro were leaving the summons they fought behind, they noticed a cloud of smoke coming from each, showing they were no longer there. The pair interpreted it to mean Temari had taken care of Pein. Upon catching up to her, they confirmed their suspicion.

"Takes care of that," spoke Temari, with a grin on her face.

"Good work," spoke Gaara. Within the next few moments, the tunnels ahead of them collapsed.

"Temari…" muttered Kankuro.

"I guess I got a little carried away," spoke Temari.

"I can clear it; we won't have to go around," spoke Gaara, as he pushed his sand through the cracks, smashing the debris back into the walls.

"I told you that was going to happen," came the voice of Pein. Temari and Kankuro turned around to see the summoner. She appeared to be injured badly. Her clothes were stained with blood, and wounds covered her body.

"I won't fight you anymore. My purpose was to stall you. I'm sure you realize the exit is at the end of that corridor. Congratulations on being the first to pass," spoke Pein, before she disappeared again.

"I'm not sure whether she did that to congratulate us, as she said, or take a jab at me," spoke Temari.

"I would say both," spoke Kankuro, before being hit on the head by Temari.

"The tunnel is clear," spoke Gaara, as the trio raced for the end of the corridor, and opened the hatch above them.

"The team from Suna has put up the most fight so far," spoke Nagato, as he took note of the first team to make it to the surface.

"What makes you say that?" asked Konan, who had visited Nagato to see how he was doing.

"They were able to fight off a pair of my strongest summons, as well as deal with my version of the jutsu that defeated me. Most impressive," replied Nagato.

"Is that so?" asked Konan.

"Well, the tunnels did help them out. My summons had trouble fighting in them, and it was easy to find the seals used for Naruto's Hiraishin no Jutsu. _(Flying Thundergod Technique)_ However, it's no small feat to be able to go one to one with summons in the manner they did," explained Nagato.

"Is it such a surprise that a kage and his siblings were able to do such a thing?" asked Konan.

"Not at all. I'm impressed all the same, though," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Konan.

"There's still a day and a half left. I won't interfere in the tunnels for the duration of the first part of the tournament. Come, let's enjoy the festivities taking place in our village," replied Nagato.

"After we personally congratulate the kazekage's team. Yahiko is already on his way there," spoke Konan.

"Ah, right, we should do that," replied Nagato.

Over the course of the next day and a half, other teams emerged from the tunnels. Some teams appeared to be more worn out than others. Some teams almost clashed upon seeing each other again. At the end of the first round, sixteen of the eighteen teams emerged from the tunnels. One team from Kusa and one team from Taki failed to make it out of the tunnels.

"I congratulate all of you for passing through the first round of the tournament. You have all done well to represent your villages," spoke Pein's Deva Path to the teams who passed the first round of his tournament.

"You will have two days to rest and prepare for the next round of the tournament. For those of you who ran into other teams, I would advise you to take note of what you learned in those fights, as well as alter your strategies to avoid being figured out, should you meet again in battle."

"Hai!" shouted the shinobi before Pein.

"I look forward to a good showing," spoke Pein, before sending the teams off.

Pein could read the faces of the shinobi presented before him. He could feel the tension raised in the first part of the tournament. His original purpose for the first round was to create some unease, as well as allow the combatants to understand each other better. Pein, as well as everyone else, greatly looked forward to the next round of the tournament.

_A/N: Before anyone points it out to me, I realize Pein's Naraka Path did not have the ability to transform. At the time I introduced the Naraka Path into Warriors of the Leaf, the Naraka Path's abilities had yet to have been revealed, so I made one up, and kept it for consistency. As for Kankuro's new puppet, since we do not know of the abilities of the new puppet he's revealed, I made up a puppet for him. Washi, written as__鷲__, means eagle. The name is a clue to its abilities. Thanks for reading, and please remember to review._


End file.
